So, yesterday, in preparation and “research” for the ol’ weekly blog, I took a cruise through Publix (our friendly neighborhood across the street from my office supermarket – truly, it’s the place where “shopping is a pleasure”).
I strolled my way over to the magazine aisle and tried to look nonchalant as I produced a small notepad and ink pen from my pocket.
Yep, Methodist preacher from across the street with pen and paper in the magazine aisle trying to look like everything is just normal.
You see, I was there to steal their headlines. What better way could there be to find out what the magazine people think we’re interested in than to go straight to the source (I know, all these major magazines have websites and you can read their headlines there…but what fun is that?).
Surely, I thought, there would be plenty to write about. That much was true.
I started with the “guy” section. You know, motorcycles, hot rods, guns and ammo, fishing, computers, fitness, all that sort of stuff. Many of them (so I’ve heard) have covers that are not suitable for description on a Methodist preacher’s blog.
“Personal Quests…Exotic Adventures…Epic Escapes”
“25 Easy Ways to Earn More Than You Ever Expected”
“The Easy Way to Hard Abs”
“Very interesting,” I thought. I’d love to take an “exotic adventure,” I probably only need 5 or 6, at most, of those 25 ways to earn more than I’ve ever expected. As for “hard abs,” what I’ve been trying has been pretty easy, but my abs, should I have some, seem somewhat less than hard.
As I glanced up the aisle toward the checkout stands, I tried to see whether any of the cashiers (they were gathered, talking, because it was early and things were slow) were taking note of the weird guy stalking the magazines and making notes.
So far, I was ok.
I worked my way toward the magazines aimed at women. I was scared.
But first, I had to make my way through the celebrity gossip section.
“The Crash of Jim Carrey” (Did he crash? What does this mean? Was he ever stable? I’m so confused.)
“Hollywood’s Obama Drama” (Again, what does this mean? I got the sense they simply couldn’t resist the opportunity to build a nifty rhyme).
Then, there was cooking, gardening and many a magazine dedicated to creating wonderful aesthetic experiences in our homes and for our families ---- or something like that.
We were moving more and more treacherously toward women’s magazine territory. Did I mention I was scared? And that a very fine sweat came forth upon my neck?
“159 Paths to Glorious Gardens” (Again, 159? Why not 6? Or even 1 that would really work? 159 just makes me tired).
“Delicious and Easy Dinners”
Closely followed by…not kidding
“Fight Fat and Win”
Moving to my left (and deeper into a seemingly unrealized irony --- Irony is not really a sought after strength among magazine editors) I found myself now confronted face-to-face with the likes of Glamour, Cosmo and the other female-oriented magazines.
As I stood, pen in one hand and paper in the other, I realized that I had caught the eye of one of the cashiers. Was she pointing me out to her co-workers?
Quickly, I read and wrote…
“Flashy Lashes…Bat Your Eyes with Funky Extensions”
“Updos for Every Length”
Updos? What’s an Updo?
Clearly, I was out of my element.
Quickly and discreetly, I slipped my pen and paper back into my pocket, my little sociological experiment now behind me.
I headed for the cereal bars as though everything was perfectly normal.
Later, the cashier smiled at me as I bought my granola bars, and thankfully didn’t ask if I’d found anything interesting in Glamour.
So…is there a point to all of this? Other than giving you “too much information” about how your pastor spends his Wednesday morning?
I think so…at least I started out thinking so…and of course, I mostly knew in the first place what I’d find on the magazine covers….
The things we “long” for.
Or, at least the things magazine editors think we long for…
Hard Abs!
Big Money!
Flashy Lashes!
Glorious Gardens!
Epic Escapes!
Crashing Carrey!
Obama Drama!
Delicious Dinners!
Updos?!?!
Easy, Easy, Easy!!!
Well…if that’s really the list of stuff that people long for…this preacher’s heart is not encourage.
‘Cause that ain’t what The Gospel is selling.
But maybe there’s hope.
You see, I’ve got my own list that I think the magazine editors may have forgotten…
Love!
Joy!
Peace!
Patience!
Kindness!
Goodness!
Faithfulness!
Gentleness!
Self-Control!
Or, what about this stuff…
Redemption!
Forgiveness!
A Second Chance!
Your Family’s Love!
Real Friendships!
Good Perspective!
Healthy Priorities!
You can’t really put those things on a magazine cover…but they do fit nicely into a book…and even better into a life.
That’s the message of the Gospel…that the things that matter most can be made right. That there is great Good News. God loves us, completely. God forgives us and enables us to live in peace and right relationship with one another.
It’s a lot to believe…you’ve got to experience it to get it. And our prayer is always that SOTH and every other place where followers of Jesus gather together ---- will be those very kinds of places where such experiences abound.
Now, go read something good --- and I’ll see you this Sunday.
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Many thanks to Kathryn Beasley, Kay Gilstrap, Judy Anderson and the whole Community and Congregational Care Team (CCC) for their excellent presentation on SOTH’s new summer lunch program to the kids of our community. SOTH gave over $700 to this worthy cause. More news coming soon!
Sermon Series Continues: Don’t miss this second installment of Adam’s new sermon series this Sunday, “I Love Jesus, But I’m Not Too Sure About Those Christians.” We’re working our way through Matthew 23, this week looking at verses 5-12.
Sunday School continues to grow and thrive for adults and kids! Come join our Seekers Class, Sue Goldsmith’s “Prayer: Does It Make a Difference” class or Adam’s “Leading Your Child to Jesus,” and drop your kids of any age for our Sunday School program after early worship and before the second service @ 10:15 a.m.
Apr 26, 2007
Apr 18, 2007
Light
Have you ever met someone that you just didn’t like?
It doesn’t mean you think that person is bad, evil, or otherwise. It just means you wouldn’t choose to go to a ballgame together.
What a crazy, odd quirk of humanity this is…the anatomy of “I don’t like you.”
Experts say that we humans size each other up and begin to draw conclusions from our first impressions in about 20 seconds.
Everything from hairstyle to clothing, to speech pattern, to gestures send us subtle yet overwhelming cues about what kind of person this other human being might be…and we begin to segregate them into “our kind of people,” or “not our kind of people.”
Should we make it through the phase of first impressions, there are whole layers of world-view, interests, politics and shared affinities and attitudes that determine how well we jive with another person.
The seeds of “like” and “dislike” implant in seconds but can take years to overcome.
It’s a miracle that any of us choose to like each other at all. Really, it is…it’s a God thing.
Believe it or not, there are people in the world who don’t like me. Amazingly, there are even folks out there who don’t like you, either.
I know this seems impossible, because we are each convinced that we are our mama’s darling babies, and that all the world must surely recognize the inherent goodness and purity of our souls and spirits, not to mention our dashing wit and charisma…right?
Don’t forget our “amazing senses of humor” and “devastating good looks.” We’ve got it going on, right? Surely goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our life, and so must a long line of admiring followers…
Well…not necessarily.
For whatever reason, the history of humanity seems to answer the question, “can’t we all just get along?” with a resounding “no.”
“Why Can’t We Be Friends?” Because I don’t like you.
In light of this reality, should we all just pack our collective marbles and head for the house?
I don’t think so.
There are still all those pesky things that Jesus tells us ---- about loving our neighbors as ourselves, about bearing each other’s burdens, about praying for our “enemies,” and he never once asks us whether we get the warm fuzzies about any of it. He doesn’t really seem to care about how much we like each other ---- but whether we will love each other.
After all, anyone can associate with and pray for their friends. It’s easy to like the people who like us. Even a “gentile” can do that.
But here’s the deal: brokenness is a real thing. You don’t have to look far to know that hatred, violence, war and murder happen every day in this world. Not only do we not like each other, we tend to do some bad, bad things.
In the last 72 hours, we’ve all been overwhelmed by the news of the mass shootings and murders that happened at Virginia Tech. Our hearts and prayers are completely joined to the families of those who have been so tragically killed.
For me, as a pastor many miles away from the scene, and with no one in my congregation directly impacted, watching our human reaction to this tragedy has been fascinating.
There are those who look at brokenness, from the silliest “they don’t like me,” or “I don’t like them,” to the realities of the most depraved acts of violence and say, “see, I told you God is not real.”
But others find a different path.
Wednesday morning, a friend pointed out something they’d seen on a post-Virginia Tech interview with a pastor on Good Morning America. When asked how a person of faith should react to such violence, he simply said, “God is even here.”
To me, the miracle is that as 8 billion people stroll around the planet every single day, acts of unspeakable evil happen so rarely.
So many people are so very good.
Folks, that’s God at work among us.
I know how little consolation that truth must be to those who mourn a bitter loss on this day. One person choosing the path of deepest evil can cause a seemingly infinite amount of pain.
And yet…where that one has chosen the darkness…hundreds and thousands at Virginia Tech, millions in our country, billions around the world…choose the light every single day.
God is even here.
God is good.
Don’t believe me? The next time that person you don’t like does something good for you (and they will), or cuts you some slack, or gives you a break…remember that God is here. God is good, and God is at work in this world. The proof is all around us.
And let’s all stop and say a prayer for the people of Virginia Tech.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
Our new Sunday School classes are underway with great success. Sue Goldsmith's class had a great response to "Prayer: Does It Make a Difference" by Phillip Yancey, and several families took part in "Leading Your Child to Jesus," in the sanctuary between worship services. Don't forget that your primary opportunity for bringing your child to Christian Education happens at 10:15 every Sunday morning. There are now three adult classes, and opportunities for children and teens of all ages.
Apr 12, 2007
Water
The pastor reached deep into pool of water gathered for this purpose. With great pomp and circumstance, he placed his wet hand upon my head. "Adam Michael Roberts," he said, "I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
Or at least that's what they tell me. I don't remember any of it.
I was just a baby.
This Sunday, we'll do something that will look quite odd to those who don't know much about Christianity.
We'll take a little baby, dress him all in white, surround him with family, hold him over a bowl of water and dribble some droplets upon his head.
All of this will be done with a certain flourish, and with particular words, and several grown folks will wipe tears from their eyes.
The baby in question will be our new son Jack. Those tears will be mine, his mama's, his grandparents and great-grandmother's and aunts and uncles and cousins...you get the idea.
What in the world is that all about?
Good question.
Baptism is not easily understood, is it?
"Sure it is," I can hear some of you say..."the Bible says that we should do it, so we do it and it really doesn't matter if we understand it or not."
Point taken.
And yet, while obedience for obedience's sake is not necessarily a bad thing...what if there was just a little more? What if there was a lot more.
It seems to me that if God asks us to do something, there most likely is a reason.
The reason lies somewhere in the mystery of that baptismal moment. It lies somewhere in the mystery of those tears.
But, not all Christian traditions baptize babies. Here in the Deep South of the U.S., the culturally dominant denominations practice "believer's baptism," baptizing only those old enough to profess faith in Jesus for themselves.
For that reason, lots of SOTH'ers will see what happens Sunday as a "dedication," rather than a baptism. It's hard sometimes to understand how an unaware and non-verbal infant can really be "baptized" without the ability to say for himself, "I believe in Jesus."
Now, trust me, there's nothing that turns off someone who is curious about Jesus faster than two Christians arguing about who's "right." That's the last thing I want this conversation to be. Thank God for all the churches out there who are changing lives and doing God's work. Whether dedicated, baptized or otherwise,
But for the many folks at SOTH who grew up in different traditions, and the many more for whom SOTH is their first church family, what's happening at the baptismal font this Sunday morning (and every other time that we baptize a child) might need a little fleshing out.
I'll be the first to admit --- baptism should happen as a response to God's love. Somebody does need to say something --- the occasion just calls for it.
At Jack's first visit to his pediatrician, she spent several moments baby-talking him, asking him questions in the cute little voice we all tend to use when we talk to the newly born.
His brother Sam, age three, observed this one-sided "conversation" between the doctor and his baby brother. With an informative tone, he told the doctor, "He doesn't speak."
Three months later, that will still be the case this Sunday.
His family will speak for him. We will state our belief in Jesus Christ, and in the love of God that is available to us all. We'll affirm that none of us earn God's love, that grace is a free gift, and that we're placing his feet on that grace-filled path.
And that is good enough.
A "believer's baptism" is a powerful and wonderful thing. Few moments in worship have stirred my heart so much as those spent with adults, both young and old, who profess their faith for the first time and receive this outward sign of God's inner work of love.
But a baby's baptism is beautiful too --- the same grace, but with a different emphasis. Jack's baptism this Sunday will be the same for him as for any other person, and it is the baptism that he will carry throughout his life. In a way that defies my ability to explain it, the goosebumps and teary eyes are a sign and token of the presence of the Holy Spirit.
We celebrate the first half of the divine handshake...God's extension of his love and grace to us all. SOTH will accept its responsibility to lead and teach Jack and all of our children in such a way that they will one day grasp God's hand for themselves.
But that will be up to him, as surely as God leaves that decision up to each of us.
I'm thankful for those who have gone before me...who brought me to that moment of baptism. I may not remember it...but it has marked my life and given more strength than I can probably begin to know.
I'll see you this Sunday...
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Thanks to everyone who came out to take part in some wonderful Easter Sunday services. We had a packed house for worship two times and the positive spirit and connection in our church was very powerful. It was exciting to welcome many visitors and we hope to see them all again.
As mentioned above, we'll be baptizing Jack Spitzer Roberts this Sunday at our 11 a.m. worship. Adam's dad, Mike Roberts, a clergy member of the Memphis Annual Conference will be on hand to preach and lead the baptism. Don't miss this exciting time of worship!
New Sunday School Opportunities!
New Adult classes forming this Sunday!
All classes, children to youth to adult -- 10:15 AM
Pastor's class: "Leading Your Child to Jesus" by Adam Roberts, sanctuary
New Class: "Prayer: Does It Make a Difference?" by Sue Goldsmith, conference room, Ranch
Seekers: Favorite Bible Verses, adult classroom, Ranch
Or at least that's what they tell me. I don't remember any of it.
I was just a baby.
This Sunday, we'll do something that will look quite odd to those who don't know much about Christianity.
We'll take a little baby, dress him all in white, surround him with family, hold him over a bowl of water and dribble some droplets upon his head.
All of this will be done with a certain flourish, and with particular words, and several grown folks will wipe tears from their eyes.
The baby in question will be our new son Jack. Those tears will be mine, his mama's, his grandparents and great-grandmother's and aunts and uncles and cousins...you get the idea.
What in the world is that all about?
Good question.
Baptism is not easily understood, is it?
"Sure it is," I can hear some of you say..."the Bible says that we should do it, so we do it and it really doesn't matter if we understand it or not."
Point taken.
And yet, while obedience for obedience's sake is not necessarily a bad thing...what if there was just a little more? What if there was a lot more.
It seems to me that if God asks us to do something, there most likely is a reason.
The reason lies somewhere in the mystery of that baptismal moment. It lies somewhere in the mystery of those tears.
But, not all Christian traditions baptize babies. Here in the Deep South of the U.S., the culturally dominant denominations practice "believer's baptism," baptizing only those old enough to profess faith in Jesus for themselves.
For that reason, lots of SOTH'ers will see what happens Sunday as a "dedication," rather than a baptism. It's hard sometimes to understand how an unaware and non-verbal infant can really be "baptized" without the ability to say for himself, "I believe in Jesus."
Now, trust me, there's nothing that turns off someone who is curious about Jesus faster than two Christians arguing about who's "right." That's the last thing I want this conversation to be. Thank God for all the churches out there who are changing lives and doing God's work. Whether dedicated, baptized or otherwise,
But for the many folks at SOTH who grew up in different traditions, and the many more for whom SOTH is their first church family, what's happening at the baptismal font this Sunday morning (and every other time that we baptize a child) might need a little fleshing out.
I'll be the first to admit --- baptism should happen as a response to God's love. Somebody does need to say something --- the occasion just calls for it.
At Jack's first visit to his pediatrician, she spent several moments baby-talking him, asking him questions in the cute little voice we all tend to use when we talk to the newly born.
His brother Sam, age three, observed this one-sided "conversation" between the doctor and his baby brother. With an informative tone, he told the doctor, "He doesn't speak."
Three months later, that will still be the case this Sunday.
His family will speak for him. We will state our belief in Jesus Christ, and in the love of God that is available to us all. We'll affirm that none of us earn God's love, that grace is a free gift, and that we're placing his feet on that grace-filled path.
And that is good enough.
A "believer's baptism" is a powerful and wonderful thing. Few moments in worship have stirred my heart so much as those spent with adults, both young and old, who profess their faith for the first time and receive this outward sign of God's inner work of love.
But a baby's baptism is beautiful too --- the same grace, but with a different emphasis. Jack's baptism this Sunday will be the same for him as for any other person, and it is the baptism that he will carry throughout his life. In a way that defies my ability to explain it, the goosebumps and teary eyes are a sign and token of the presence of the Holy Spirit.
We celebrate the first half of the divine handshake...God's extension of his love and grace to us all. SOTH will accept its responsibility to lead and teach Jack and all of our children in such a way that they will one day grasp God's hand for themselves.
But that will be up to him, as surely as God leaves that decision up to each of us.
I'm thankful for those who have gone before me...who brought me to that moment of baptism. I may not remember it...but it has marked my life and given more strength than I can probably begin to know.
I'll see you this Sunday...
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Thanks to everyone who came out to take part in some wonderful Easter Sunday services. We had a packed house for worship two times and the positive spirit and connection in our church was very powerful. It was exciting to welcome many visitors and we hope to see them all again.
As mentioned above, we'll be baptizing Jack Spitzer Roberts this Sunday at our 11 a.m. worship. Adam's dad, Mike Roberts, a clergy member of the Memphis Annual Conference will be on hand to preach and lead the baptism. Don't miss this exciting time of worship!
New Sunday School Opportunities!
New Adult classes forming this Sunday!
All classes, children to youth to adult -- 10:15 AM
Pastor's class: "Leading Your Child to Jesus" by Adam Roberts, sanctuary
New Class: "Prayer: Does It Make a Difference?" by Sue Goldsmith, conference room, Ranch
Seekers: Favorite Bible Verses, adult classroom, Ranch
Apr 4, 2007
Fail
Thanks again to Robin and Shane who posted in the comments section last week and shared some personal stories of those who’ve gone before you and how those loved ones shaped their lives. Robin, SOTH continues to pray for you in the loss you’ve gone through in these last several months. Shane, congrats good buddy on the birth of baby Oliver! He’s a lucky little boy, born to a wonderful family.
Without much further ado…on to the Holy Week blog. And, glad to be back on a Wednesday morning by the way…
Well, it’s official…Spring is here.
OK, there have been moments when it’s felt as though summer is actually upon us.
It’s spring break week, and those of us who, by successful matriculation, have earned the privilege of easy weekday transit on our town’s highways and shopping aisles find them clogged with kids who ought to be somewhere learning something.
Everybody’s Bermuda is a deeper shade of green each day. I have discovered a 72nd type of Georgia pollen that will send my histamine production into overdrive. We have these things called leaves again…and man, did I miss them.
A distinct cracking sound can be heard all across the country. Nope, not the sound of baseball bats ripping line drives (though not much could sound better)…it’s the sound of millions of too-old elbows popping as amateur third basemen and left fielders try to throw softballs much further and harder than their anatomy now allows.
And so the seasons, and the cycle of life, move forward together.
Those softball fields (home to the above-referenced cracking sounds) can be a place of deep spiritual reflection, you know. There’s a reason churches tend to play the sport, after all.
Nothing builds character like failure. Occasional humiliation, even.
A ball the size of a really large grapefruit comes floating toward home plate at the speed of 12 mph. As a good friend of mine (and mighty talented ballplayer) once told me, “There’s no reason a grown man should hit less than .900 in slowpitch.”
For those of you unschooled in the ways of batting average, that’s a reference to getting a hit in at least 90% of your at bats.
I couldn’t agree more. But, for me at least, it’s still impossible.
That’s what makes softball such a fun, and deeply aggravating pastime. I don’t play golf, but I’ve heard plenty of guys tell me that they have similar feelings about the little white ball that sits on the ground, motionless, taunting them.
As Springteen's “Glory Days” plays loudly in our heads, we look back through the hazy crystal ball and somehow remember a time when we knew we really could hit a much, much smaller object, thrown by much, much more athletic young men at speeds of over 80 mph. Oh yeah, it could change direction at the last second, too.
Now, we pop this beachball up to the second baseman.
And, if we’re getting anywhere in our journeys at all…life is still good.
Those guys who play at “The Ted,” the ones making 29 bazillion dollars a season…they pop up, too. Hitting .300 (only getting a hit in 30% of your at bats) in the big leagues will make you very, very wealthy.
40% success is the stuff of legend.
Baseball…softball…life…it’s all about perseverance and the overcoming of much failure.
And Jesus, especially this week, has something important to tell us.
This morning on sacredspace, I was reminded that in a very real way, the cross can be a sign of failure. On Good Friday, it must have seemed to every single person who witnessed Jesus death that a wonderful dream had come to a bitter end.
Until Jesus, no one believed that God could “fail.” No one thought that the messiah might die. No one knew that God might love us so much that he would come among us…and allow us to mock him, beat him, reject and kill him.
Think you’re having a bad day? God incarnate…Emmanuel, God With Us…Jesus Christ…has walked that path before you.
The cross redeems our failures.
The cross redeems our shame.
Because the cross is not the end. The story of Jesus is unique and so important for the realities of life that we all face.
Real success, you see, lies at the bottom of the trough of failure. What great good news.
On Friday night, we will remember the crucifixion at SOTH. We will remember the failure, the rejection, the shame. We will begin in light and move toward darkness. We will leave our sanctuary with these words from John…
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
The darkness of failure will do it’s worst…but it can never win.
Easter Sunday morning, the son rises. “Failure,” is transformed into the very vehicle of eternal victory.
Think of that the next time things don’t roll your way. Real success lies just around the corner.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Well, not everybody’s in Florida this week (not that I’m bitter or anything…), and for those of you who are in town, we really hope that you’ll come out this Friday night to our “Service of Darkness,” commemorating the crucifixion of Christ. I can promise that the service will be deeply moving, and your experience on Good Friday will deepen the joy of Easter morning. Friday night, sanctuary, 7PM.
Easter Sunday schedule:
7 AM Sunrise Service @ The Pavilion (Dorsett Shoals Road) to be led by our Youth Group, “The Flock.” Everyone is invited to come out and take part in this very meaningful service of resurrection.
9 AM & 11 AM Morning Worship: Two great worship services and we’re expecting full houses for both. A great day of music, scripture, prayer and preaching, plus a special presentation for our youth. Childcare will be available at both services for children 1st grade and younger, with SS available for children through adults at 10:15. Don’t forget to bring fresh-cut flowers for the Easter cross which we’ll post out by Chapel Hill Road.
6 PM Evening worship in the sanctuary --- a wonderful way to end your Easter Sunday. No youth group Easter Sunday night.
Thanks to everyone who participated in the Easter Egg Hunt this past Sunday after worship! Lunch was great, the turnout was huge and it was a blast for everybody. Great Job, Kathryn!!!!
Without much further ado…on to the Holy Week blog. And, glad to be back on a Wednesday morning by the way…
Well, it’s official…Spring is here.
OK, there have been moments when it’s felt as though summer is actually upon us.
It’s spring break week, and those of us who, by successful matriculation, have earned the privilege of easy weekday transit on our town’s highways and shopping aisles find them clogged with kids who ought to be somewhere learning something.
Everybody’s Bermuda is a deeper shade of green each day. I have discovered a 72nd type of Georgia pollen that will send my histamine production into overdrive. We have these things called leaves again…and man, did I miss them.
A distinct cracking sound can be heard all across the country. Nope, not the sound of baseball bats ripping line drives (though not much could sound better)…it’s the sound of millions of too-old elbows popping as amateur third basemen and left fielders try to throw softballs much further and harder than their anatomy now allows.
And so the seasons, and the cycle of life, move forward together.
Those softball fields (home to the above-referenced cracking sounds) can be a place of deep spiritual reflection, you know. There’s a reason churches tend to play the sport, after all.
Nothing builds character like failure. Occasional humiliation, even.
A ball the size of a really large grapefruit comes floating toward home plate at the speed of 12 mph. As a good friend of mine (and mighty talented ballplayer) once told me, “There’s no reason a grown man should hit less than .900 in slowpitch.”
For those of you unschooled in the ways of batting average, that’s a reference to getting a hit in at least 90% of your at bats.
I couldn’t agree more. But, for me at least, it’s still impossible.
That’s what makes softball such a fun, and deeply aggravating pastime. I don’t play golf, but I’ve heard plenty of guys tell me that they have similar feelings about the little white ball that sits on the ground, motionless, taunting them.
As Springteen's “Glory Days” plays loudly in our heads, we look back through the hazy crystal ball and somehow remember a time when we knew we really could hit a much, much smaller object, thrown by much, much more athletic young men at speeds of over 80 mph. Oh yeah, it could change direction at the last second, too.
Now, we pop this beachball up to the second baseman.
And, if we’re getting anywhere in our journeys at all…life is still good.
Those guys who play at “The Ted,” the ones making 29 bazillion dollars a season…they pop up, too. Hitting .300 (only getting a hit in 30% of your at bats) in the big leagues will make you very, very wealthy.
40% success is the stuff of legend.
Baseball…softball…life…it’s all about perseverance and the overcoming of much failure.
And Jesus, especially this week, has something important to tell us.
This morning on sacredspace, I was reminded that in a very real way, the cross can be a sign of failure. On Good Friday, it must have seemed to every single person who witnessed Jesus death that a wonderful dream had come to a bitter end.
Until Jesus, no one believed that God could “fail.” No one thought that the messiah might die. No one knew that God might love us so much that he would come among us…and allow us to mock him, beat him, reject and kill him.
Think you’re having a bad day? God incarnate…Emmanuel, God With Us…Jesus Christ…has walked that path before you.
The cross redeems our failures.
The cross redeems our shame.
Because the cross is not the end. The story of Jesus is unique and so important for the realities of life that we all face.
Real success, you see, lies at the bottom of the trough of failure. What great good news.
On Friday night, we will remember the crucifixion at SOTH. We will remember the failure, the rejection, the shame. We will begin in light and move toward darkness. We will leave our sanctuary with these words from John…
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
The darkness of failure will do it’s worst…but it can never win.
Easter Sunday morning, the son rises. “Failure,” is transformed into the very vehicle of eternal victory.
Think of that the next time things don’t roll your way. Real success lies just around the corner.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Well, not everybody’s in Florida this week (not that I’m bitter or anything…), and for those of you who are in town, we really hope that you’ll come out this Friday night to our “Service of Darkness,” commemorating the crucifixion of Christ. I can promise that the service will be deeply moving, and your experience on Good Friday will deepen the joy of Easter morning. Friday night, sanctuary, 7PM.
Easter Sunday schedule:
7 AM Sunrise Service @ The Pavilion (Dorsett Shoals Road) to be led by our Youth Group, “The Flock.” Everyone is invited to come out and take part in this very meaningful service of resurrection.
9 AM & 11 AM Morning Worship: Two great worship services and we’re expecting full houses for both. A great day of music, scripture, prayer and preaching, plus a special presentation for our youth. Childcare will be available at both services for children 1st grade and younger, with SS available for children through adults at 10:15. Don’t forget to bring fresh-cut flowers for the Easter cross which we’ll post out by Chapel Hill Road.
6 PM Evening worship in the sanctuary --- a wonderful way to end your Easter Sunday. No youth group Easter Sunday night.
Thanks to everyone who participated in the Easter Egg Hunt this past Sunday after worship! Lunch was great, the turnout was huge and it was a blast for everybody. Great Job, Kathryn!!!!
Mar 29, 2007
Pop
“There was a man, born in a small town, who grew up in the country,” the preacher began. “He didn’t have the most educational opportunities, but he learned a trade and became a skilled carpenter. He traveled from place, to place, doing good for the people wherever he went.”
With a pause, he added, “does that story sound familiar?”
For those who’ve heard the story of Jesus of Nazareth, that biography does sound familiar indeed.
“Laudell,” he said, “and Jesus had a lot in common.”
I agree. But I think my grandfather would have laughed at that idea, and pretty hard.
“If that don’t beat all,” he might have said.
“Well, we were both carpenters,” I can almost hear him say, followed by “…but I reckon that’s about as far as it goes.” Comparison with Jesus would have overwhelmed and embarrassed him.
Admittedly, on the surface our Pop might have seemed like an unlikely candidate for a Jesus Christ comparison.
“Plain talk makes for fair understanding,” he used to love to say, explaining away his penchant for “salty” language.
If you don’t know what that means, then you’ve just never spent much time with hammer-swinging, nail-driving, World War II naval veterans from Cypress, Tennessee.
And you don’t know what you’ve missed.
I'll tell you right now...plain talk does make for pretty fair understanding.
He was as tough as the nails that he drove for a living. While visiting this past week, I loved hearing my uncles talk about how, even after pneumatic nail guns came into use, they couldn’t frame a house as quickly as my Pop and his colleagues could finish the job with plain old hammers. One swing to set a 16-penny nail, and another to drive it in. If you had to hit it again, then you were just plain old soft.
I heard others throughout the weekend describe Pop’s work ethic, and I think my favorite comment was, “he picked cotton like a machine, before cotton picking machines were ever thought of.”
His whole life, was pulled by force from the West Tennessee dirt. He taught himself, worked for himself, and was incredibly disciplined about doing what needed to be done, no matter what.
Laudell Spitzer was made of iron.
But Pop was also “soft,” in all the ways that matter most. He loved his family with all his heart. His kids (6), grandkids (14) and great-grandkids (17) can tell you how much he loved to be with every one of us. He made his peace with God and I believe that he followed Jesus in every way that he could. His worn-through Bible tells the story of his faith.
He was a friend to all kinds of folks, and he never met a person who was “better” than him, and he never met anyone that he thought he was “better” than because God made us all.
He loved my Grandmama with deep devotion throughout their 60+ years of marriage.
The truth is, I could go on and on about him all day. I loved my Pop, and he was a hero in my eyes.
Last week, telling his stories with my family made our time together sacred and began the process of healing. As I looked around at the faces of my family and thought of the influence that he had on us all, I knew that in a real and powerful way, Pop’s not really gone.
This Palm Sunday, we remember the moment when the devoted followers of that other carpenter welcomed him triumphantly into Jerusalem. They believed that he was the messiah they’d always hoped for --- the one who would free them from Roman occupation and re-establish the throne of King David.
What they found instead was a pretty unlikely candidate for savior.
He was just a carpenter from the country.
“He welcomes sinners and eats with them,” they declared. And as the charges continued to mount against him throughout the week, Jesus consistently declared the arrival of a new kind of “kingdom.” When he finally stood before Pilate, his words were few, but piercing. He did not fight…he sacrificed.
When that bad Good Friday had ended, I can only imagine that those closest to him, shocked and full of loss, must have told his stories to help them find their way. Despair may have ruled for a time, but I hope that some of them remembered the promises he’d made, even in the midst of their grief.
Before I left West Tennessee, I spent some time at Pop’s grave, all by myself. He’s buried just yards from the country road that connects the family church and the family homeplace.
With a sense of happy irony, I realized that the very road he traveled over so often (at a mighty fine rate of speed, by the way) will now stand watch over him for years to come. That same ground holds the bodies of my great-grandparents, an aunt, and now my grandfather.
If I truly believed that a burial place marks the end…that there could never be more at the end of life than a tomb…then the living of that life would be so sad and hollow.
But there is more. There is this moment, and there is the forever God has prepared for us. “Because I live…” the resurrected Jesus told his disciples, “you will live also.”
I believe it. And in the core of who I am, I know that promise holds true. This Easter will celebrate the sweetest promise of resurrection that I have ever known.
We will all see each other again.
Grace and Peace,
Adam
I want to say a special word of thanks to all of you who have called, written and prayed for us this past week. Our time of loss continues, as this morning we received word that Holly’s grandmother Audrey had died after an extended illness. We are learning just what it means to be loved by a family of faith and supported in every way. We will be traveling to be with family in East Tennessee and will return after the funeral on Saturday afternoon.
I think it's appropriate, and would be a beautiful thing, for any who want to leave a word or comment about any loved ones they're remembering during this upcoming Holy Week. I hope that some of you will take the opportunity to tell your stories and remember. Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
This Sunday is “Palm Sunday” and we will gather for worship at 9:00 and 11:00 a.m., on our regular schedule. Following worship, we are already expecting a huge crowd for lunch and an Easter Egg Hunt for the kids. For more info, visit our website, www.sothumc.net and follow the “Easter Egg Hunt” link on the home page.
Don’t forget Good Friday! On Friday night, April 6th, we will gather at the church at 7pm for a special time of worship. Please plan to join us as we remember the crucifixion and prepare our hearts for Easter Sunday’s worship celebration.
Easter Sunday Schedule:
7 a.m.: Sunrise Service @ The Pavillion, led by our youth group, “The Flock.”
9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Easter worship in the Sanctuary
Again, for more info, go to www.sothumc.net
With a pause, he added, “does that story sound familiar?”
For those who’ve heard the story of Jesus of Nazareth, that biography does sound familiar indeed.
“Laudell,” he said, “and Jesus had a lot in common.”
I agree. But I think my grandfather would have laughed at that idea, and pretty hard.
“If that don’t beat all,” he might have said.
“Well, we were both carpenters,” I can almost hear him say, followed by “…but I reckon that’s about as far as it goes.” Comparison with Jesus would have overwhelmed and embarrassed him.
Admittedly, on the surface our Pop might have seemed like an unlikely candidate for a Jesus Christ comparison.
“Plain talk makes for fair understanding,” he used to love to say, explaining away his penchant for “salty” language.
If you don’t know what that means, then you’ve just never spent much time with hammer-swinging, nail-driving, World War II naval veterans from Cypress, Tennessee.
And you don’t know what you’ve missed.
I'll tell you right now...plain talk does make for pretty fair understanding.
He was as tough as the nails that he drove for a living. While visiting this past week, I loved hearing my uncles talk about how, even after pneumatic nail guns came into use, they couldn’t frame a house as quickly as my Pop and his colleagues could finish the job with plain old hammers. One swing to set a 16-penny nail, and another to drive it in. If you had to hit it again, then you were just plain old soft.
I heard others throughout the weekend describe Pop’s work ethic, and I think my favorite comment was, “he picked cotton like a machine, before cotton picking machines were ever thought of.”
His whole life, was pulled by force from the West Tennessee dirt. He taught himself, worked for himself, and was incredibly disciplined about doing what needed to be done, no matter what.
Laudell Spitzer was made of iron.
But Pop was also “soft,” in all the ways that matter most. He loved his family with all his heart. His kids (6), grandkids (14) and great-grandkids (17) can tell you how much he loved to be with every one of us. He made his peace with God and I believe that he followed Jesus in every way that he could. His worn-through Bible tells the story of his faith.
He was a friend to all kinds of folks, and he never met a person who was “better” than him, and he never met anyone that he thought he was “better” than because God made us all.
He loved my Grandmama with deep devotion throughout their 60+ years of marriage.
The truth is, I could go on and on about him all day. I loved my Pop, and he was a hero in my eyes.
Last week, telling his stories with my family made our time together sacred and began the process of healing. As I looked around at the faces of my family and thought of the influence that he had on us all, I knew that in a real and powerful way, Pop’s not really gone.
This Palm Sunday, we remember the moment when the devoted followers of that other carpenter welcomed him triumphantly into Jerusalem. They believed that he was the messiah they’d always hoped for --- the one who would free them from Roman occupation and re-establish the throne of King David.
What they found instead was a pretty unlikely candidate for savior.
He was just a carpenter from the country.
“He welcomes sinners and eats with them,” they declared. And as the charges continued to mount against him throughout the week, Jesus consistently declared the arrival of a new kind of “kingdom.” When he finally stood before Pilate, his words were few, but piercing. He did not fight…he sacrificed.
When that bad Good Friday had ended, I can only imagine that those closest to him, shocked and full of loss, must have told his stories to help them find their way. Despair may have ruled for a time, but I hope that some of them remembered the promises he’d made, even in the midst of their grief.
Before I left West Tennessee, I spent some time at Pop’s grave, all by myself. He’s buried just yards from the country road that connects the family church and the family homeplace.
With a sense of happy irony, I realized that the very road he traveled over so often (at a mighty fine rate of speed, by the way) will now stand watch over him for years to come. That same ground holds the bodies of my great-grandparents, an aunt, and now my grandfather.
If I truly believed that a burial place marks the end…that there could never be more at the end of life than a tomb…then the living of that life would be so sad and hollow.
But there is more. There is this moment, and there is the forever God has prepared for us. “Because I live…” the resurrected Jesus told his disciples, “you will live also.”
I believe it. And in the core of who I am, I know that promise holds true. This Easter will celebrate the sweetest promise of resurrection that I have ever known.
We will all see each other again.
Grace and Peace,
Adam
I want to say a special word of thanks to all of you who have called, written and prayed for us this past week. Our time of loss continues, as this morning we received word that Holly’s grandmother Audrey had died after an extended illness. We are learning just what it means to be loved by a family of faith and supported in every way. We will be traveling to be with family in East Tennessee and will return after the funeral on Saturday afternoon.
I think it's appropriate, and would be a beautiful thing, for any who want to leave a word or comment about any loved ones they're remembering during this upcoming Holy Week. I hope that some of you will take the opportunity to tell your stories and remember. Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
This Sunday is “Palm Sunday” and we will gather for worship at 9:00 and 11:00 a.m., on our regular schedule. Following worship, we are already expecting a huge crowd for lunch and an Easter Egg Hunt for the kids. For more info, visit our website, www.sothumc.net and follow the “Easter Egg Hunt” link on the home page.
Don’t forget Good Friday! On Friday night, April 6th, we will gather at the church at 7pm for a special time of worship. Please plan to join us as we remember the crucifixion and prepare our hearts for Easter Sunday’s worship celebration.
Easter Sunday Schedule:
7 a.m.: Sunrise Service @ The Pavillion, led by our youth group, “The Flock.”
9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Easter worship in the Sanctuary
Again, for more info, go to www.sothumc.net
Mar 22, 2007
Condolences
SOTH UMC is saddened to report that Adam lost his beloved grandfather, Laudell Spitzer, on Tuesday, March 20, 2007. Mr. Spitzer enjoyed 81 years here with his family and loved ones, but now has gone on to be with our Father above.
Please be in prayer for the Spitzer and Roberts families as they are dealing with this loss.
Adam's blog will return next week.
Blessings,
SOTH UMC
Please be in prayer for the Spitzer and Roberts families as they are dealing with this loss.
Adam's blog will return next week.
Blessings,
SOTH UMC
Mar 7, 2007
A s s u m e
A hard groundball is hit to the shortstop. He drops it, kicks it, tries to pick it up and drops it again. Somehow, on his third attempt, he grabs the ball successfully and fires it to first base. Even though the ball beats the runner by half a step, the umpire still screams out, “Safe!”
Or…a runner from second base tears through his coach’s “stop” sign at third base. The throw from the outfielder beats him home by ten feet. Miraculously, he somehow slides around the tag, dragging his outstretched hand across home plate while the catcher’s tag misses him altogether.
Even so, the umpire let’s fly with his decision: “OUT!!!”
In their most honest moments, baseball umpires (and the referees and officials of many other sports) would tell you that early assumptions can cause them to misjudge reality.
When the ump becomes convinced in his or her heart that “out,” or “safe,” is the right call, what they see in reality often ceases to matter.
We human beings can be that way about a lot of things.
In their training, sports officials are taught to work hard at not assuming what will happen next, but only at judging and reacting to what they observe in reality.
A fine lesson for us all.
Sunday night, I watched the much antipacted “Lost Tomb of Jesus” documentary on the Discovery Channel. I knew that many folks at SOTH and Christians throughout the world would have questions about what they saw there, and I had concerns (and assumptions, which do sometimes turn out to be right) about how the material would be presented.
They started with their “answer.”
Conspiracy, the show asserted as its opening premise, has covered up the truth about Jesus and his family for millennia. From that point on, they then seemed pretty determined to be undeterred by the “facts,” no matter what they were.
You could see their conclusions had been drawn, even before the archaeology was presented.
Every commercial break ended with a sensationalized question, and the strong implication that these “warriors for the truth” would soon bring to light some long-lost facts.
Certainly, they assume, an ancient tomb in Jerusalem containing ossuaries (bone boxes) inscribed with the named of “Jesus son of Joseph,” and “Maria,” must be the family tomb of Jesus.
Of course, a closer examination of the evidence and a hearing from any of the legion of archaeologists and biblical scholars who have commented on this film casts huge doubt upon their claims and the credibility of their presentation.
For any of you who saw the documentary and have become concerned as to whether the film’s claims were real, let me assure you that these “documentarians” have done much more than make simple “connections” between the “dots” held within that tomb.
They have stretched, pushed, pulled, and when necessary, fabricated stories to make the dots align to their preconceived conclusions. Rest easy and have no fear that their supposedly new findings in any way threaten the historical Christian faith handed on to us through scripture and tradition.
Only 6 of the 10 ossuaries in the tomb were inscribed. Only the Jesus (Yeshua) and Mary (Maria) inscriptions clearly match the New Testament records, although they attempt to make claims for Yose and Mattya by following theoretical strands of argument and possibility. While they do point out that Yeshua and Maria are among the most common names of that time, they attempt to mitigate that point by making some pretty incredible assertions about the two remaining inscriptions.
One box is marked “MarianmeMara,” and another, “Yehoda bar Yeshua” (Judah son of Jesus).
Surely, the film assumes, this MUST be evidence of Mary Magdalene, who was secretly married to Jesus, and of Judah, their secretly conceived son.
Nevermind that there is NO record of Mary Magdalene being called “Marianme.” They refer to the 4th century “Gospel of Phillip” as showing “Marianme” was used in reference to her. This is absolutely not something that can be proven, but even from that text is an assumption.
While “Marianme” is written in Greek on the ossuary, they assert that “Mara,” is from the Aramaic title for “master,” a term given to highly respected teachers. This MUST mean, they proclaim, that Marianme is really Mary Magdalene, who was highly respected as a teacher and apostle in the early church. After all, she was Jesus’ wife.
Nevermind that there is absolutely no evidence, whatsoever, in any early Christian writing, or in scripture that Jesus was married. Nevermind that they can’t produce any such evidence.
That, you see (they say) is because of the conspiracy to cover up that truth. Nevermind that our scripture itself names other apostles who were married, and that there was absolutely no shame whatsoever in a Rabbi being married. Nevermind that the early church had no reason to cover up that truth, and that many NT scriptures show that women played important and prominent roles in life of the church.
And on, and on. Nevermind the facts, if you’ve already decided the ending.
There are many more problems with their presentation of the facts, but that’s enough of that for now. Here is a link from Ben Witherington, professor at Asbury Theological Seminary with more information well worth your time if you’re interested in reading more. Go "googling," and you can find all you'd ever want to read and then some.
There’s a lesson here for us all to learn. We often see what we want to ---- and our world is conditioned many times by what we expect it to be.
If we’re convinced that a person in our lives, or some entire group of people, could never be positive, worthwhile or uplifting, then it’s likely that we’ll never experience them in those ways, even when the facts tell us otherwise.
If we’re sure that the world is conspiring against us, that our own political opinions are always infallible or that “some things just don’t change,” you can be sure that they won’t.
If we’re determined to force the peg of our world into some predetermined hole, no matter what the cost, you can be sure that yes, we’ll pretty much always be able to jam it home.
And you can also know that we’ll always be the ones who pay.
Does that mean that there are no assumptions on which we can build our lives? Where is the “rock” of firm foundation that Jesus mentioned as good for “house” building?
How about this?
“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
Or this?
“Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.” I John 4
Or even this?
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” Hebrews 11:1
God is with us, and the good news of the empty tomb can shape the reality of our lives.
Assume the best. It’s what you’ll see.
Grace and Peace,
Adam
Or…a runner from second base tears through his coach’s “stop” sign at third base. The throw from the outfielder beats him home by ten feet. Miraculously, he somehow slides around the tag, dragging his outstretched hand across home plate while the catcher’s tag misses him altogether.
Even so, the umpire let’s fly with his decision: “OUT!!!”
In their most honest moments, baseball umpires (and the referees and officials of many other sports) would tell you that early assumptions can cause them to misjudge reality.
When the ump becomes convinced in his or her heart that “out,” or “safe,” is the right call, what they see in reality often ceases to matter.
We human beings can be that way about a lot of things.
In their training, sports officials are taught to work hard at not assuming what will happen next, but only at judging and reacting to what they observe in reality.
A fine lesson for us all.
Sunday night, I watched the much antipacted “Lost Tomb of Jesus” documentary on the Discovery Channel. I knew that many folks at SOTH and Christians throughout the world would have questions about what they saw there, and I had concerns (and assumptions, which do sometimes turn out to be right) about how the material would be presented.
They started with their “answer.”
Conspiracy, the show asserted as its opening premise, has covered up the truth about Jesus and his family for millennia. From that point on, they then seemed pretty determined to be undeterred by the “facts,” no matter what they were.
You could see their conclusions had been drawn, even before the archaeology was presented.
Every commercial break ended with a sensationalized question, and the strong implication that these “warriors for the truth” would soon bring to light some long-lost facts.
Certainly, they assume, an ancient tomb in Jerusalem containing ossuaries (bone boxes) inscribed with the named of “Jesus son of Joseph,” and “Maria,” must be the family tomb of Jesus.
Of course, a closer examination of the evidence and a hearing from any of the legion of archaeologists and biblical scholars who have commented on this film casts huge doubt upon their claims and the credibility of their presentation.
For any of you who saw the documentary and have become concerned as to whether the film’s claims were real, let me assure you that these “documentarians” have done much more than make simple “connections” between the “dots” held within that tomb.
They have stretched, pushed, pulled, and when necessary, fabricated stories to make the dots align to their preconceived conclusions. Rest easy and have no fear that their supposedly new findings in any way threaten the historical Christian faith handed on to us through scripture and tradition.
Only 6 of the 10 ossuaries in the tomb were inscribed. Only the Jesus (Yeshua) and Mary (Maria) inscriptions clearly match the New Testament records, although they attempt to make claims for Yose and Mattya by following theoretical strands of argument and possibility. While they do point out that Yeshua and Maria are among the most common names of that time, they attempt to mitigate that point by making some pretty incredible assertions about the two remaining inscriptions.
One box is marked “MarianmeMara,” and another, “Yehoda bar Yeshua” (Judah son of Jesus).
Surely, the film assumes, this MUST be evidence of Mary Magdalene, who was secretly married to Jesus, and of Judah, their secretly conceived son.
Nevermind that there is NO record of Mary Magdalene being called “Marianme.” They refer to the 4th century “Gospel of Phillip” as showing “Marianme” was used in reference to her. This is absolutely not something that can be proven, but even from that text is an assumption.
While “Marianme” is written in Greek on the ossuary, they assert that “Mara,” is from the Aramaic title for “master,” a term given to highly respected teachers. This MUST mean, they proclaim, that Marianme is really Mary Magdalene, who was highly respected as a teacher and apostle in the early church. After all, she was Jesus’ wife.
Nevermind that there is absolutely no evidence, whatsoever, in any early Christian writing, or in scripture that Jesus was married. Nevermind that they can’t produce any such evidence.
That, you see (they say) is because of the conspiracy to cover up that truth. Nevermind that our scripture itself names other apostles who were married, and that there was absolutely no shame whatsoever in a Rabbi being married. Nevermind that the early church had no reason to cover up that truth, and that many NT scriptures show that women played important and prominent roles in life of the church.
And on, and on. Nevermind the facts, if you’ve already decided the ending.
There are many more problems with their presentation of the facts, but that’s enough of that for now. Here is a link from Ben Witherington, professor at Asbury Theological Seminary with more information well worth your time if you’re interested in reading more. Go "googling," and you can find all you'd ever want to read and then some.
There’s a lesson here for us all to learn. We often see what we want to ---- and our world is conditioned many times by what we expect it to be.
If we’re convinced that a person in our lives, or some entire group of people, could never be positive, worthwhile or uplifting, then it’s likely that we’ll never experience them in those ways, even when the facts tell us otherwise.
If we’re sure that the world is conspiring against us, that our own political opinions are always infallible or that “some things just don’t change,” you can be sure that they won’t.
If we’re determined to force the peg of our world into some predetermined hole, no matter what the cost, you can be sure that yes, we’ll pretty much always be able to jam it home.
And you can also know that we’ll always be the ones who pay.
Does that mean that there are no assumptions on which we can build our lives? Where is the “rock” of firm foundation that Jesus mentioned as good for “house” building?
How about this?
“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
Or this?
“Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.” I John 4
Or even this?
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” Hebrews 11:1
God is with us, and the good news of the empty tomb can shape the reality of our lives.
Assume the best. It’s what you’ll see.
Grace and Peace,
Adam
Mar 1, 2007
Family
“Now, I’d buy a ticket to that family reunion…” my friend’s e-mail began.
Yeah, me too.
Al Sharpton and Strom Thurmond might be related. Ain’t that a kick in the pants?
Only in America, folks. And I mean that.
Like all countries everywhere, the America of today is a product of its yesterdays gone before.
But our history is a particularly curious and convoluted one.
There is so much to be proud of, and so many ways that American dreams and people have made the world so much better than anyone could have imagined.
At the very same time, there are real demons of our past and deep-seated attitudes that have haunted us through the generations and are not yet entirely exorcised today.
The most interesting fact of American life is that our story really hasn’t been entirely told.
We are very much a work in progress.
Sometimes, that work gets hampered because we don’t can’t find positive models of conversation that helps and heals.
Even so, the movement that has happened in our country in the last four generations is amazing and should be celebrated.
My grandparents grew up in a world where racial lines were clearly demarcated and never to be questioned. My parents’ generation experienced the civil rights’ movement and integration. That generation bore the pain of change (whether black or white) and struggled to find a way toward that healthy conversation that didn’t end in violence and frustration. I grew up in a different world, though the mix of new and old assumptions have surrounded me throughout my life.
My sons are growing up in a truly different time. It’s not unusual to hear Haitian French, Spanish or Asian languages on the sidewalks and in the common areas of our neighborhood. All the important places of their lives are populated by a wonderful mix of people: some who look like them, and some who don’t.
At school, at church, at the neighborhood pool…they are learning that it really is the content of a person’s character that should stand as the measuring stick of their lives.
Now, I don’t mean to be Pollyanna. Already, my boys have noticed that they need lots of sunscreen at that pool…more than lots of their friends. But I swear, that’s about the extent of what skin color means for them right now.
Recently, when our three year old had some questions about the ways that people look, we asked him what color he was.
“Pink,” he said.
Sounds fine to us.
When they inevitably encounter the idea that says one skin pigmentation is somehow better than another, I believe with all my heart that they’ll reject it. Good conversation, positive friendships and healthy experiences will be the reason why.
One thing I know for sure… loud politicians will not be the reason.
I pray that history will never let Strom Thurmond’s voice stand as speaking for white people everywhere. Although some of his policies and opinions moved throughout his lifetime, he still stands in history as the icon of the “Old South,” running for President in 1948 on a segregationist ticket. He got 39 electoral votes, people.
If white folks don’t want to be judged by Strom, black folks sometimes feel the same about Rev. Al.
Here’s what I mean. Cruising channels a couple of days ago, I came across a panel discussion of African-American politicians and entertainers on TV Land, called, “That’s What I’m Talking About."
Comedian Wanda Sykes was on the panel, and so was Al Sharpton. At one point, Wanda said, “Don’t take this wrong Al, but sometimes I see you on TV, and the first thing I think is, ‘Lord, please don’t let him say something crazy.’”
Rev. Al did not look pleased.
You see, I think Al and Strom might have more in common than an ancestor. They shared a love for the spotlight, and a love-affair with mass media. Both of them could always find the camera and the microphone. Politicians at heart, publicity is like life-blood. They both wanted the seat in the Oval Office.
“I’d buy a ticket for that family reunion.” Me too.
But, I’d rather have a ticket at the kind of reunion that ought to happen in churches, that reflect our communities, every single morning.
Jesus didn’t have a lot to say about “race,” per se, but he sure did have a lot to say about crossing society’s boundaries. He touched those who were considered untouchable. He drank water given to him by a Samaritan woman. He leveled playing fields, championed unlikely heroes in his parables and dared to eat with “sinners.”
That’s you and me, all of us, no matter what SPF you need when you’re down at the pool. Thanks be to God for the good ol’ U.S. of A., warts and all. Thanks be to God for the distance we’ve traveled, and thanks to God for the journey that we will yet make together.
Take somebody’s hand, and make a different conversation ---- a different tomorrow.
Grace and Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
This Sunday our own Tim Potate will preach in both Sunday morning worship services. Tim is working through the process of candidacy for United Methodist ministry, and we’re proud to support him in every way that we can. An anonymous donor has begun a scholarship fund in Tim’s honor to support him in any educational expenses he may incur, and all are welcome to donate to that fund.
Sunday School at SOTH: Sunday School is one of the most important moments in our Life at SOTH: Between worship services, at 10:15 a.m., Sunday School classes are available for children and youth of all ages. Please make every effort to support your child’s learning of scripture and deepening of their faith in a fun and upbeat environment.
Sunday School for Adults is available in small group at The Ranch, or in the worship space, as our large group studies The Gospel of John. We use clips from a recently produced film based on the Gospel, and work hard at learning what the scripture is all about. Coffee, conversation and a solid Bible lesson, all just after or right before your Sunday worship experience. Sunday School at SOTH is worth the trip!
SOTHUMC.NET report: Thanks to all of you for the great work you’ve done inviting others to come check out our new website, www.sothumc.net! Since last Thursday, we’ve had over 200 visits, with over 1700 pageviews! Keep up the good work, and invite all your friends to check it out.
Baby Noor in today's AJC: An Update on Baby Noor ran on the front of today's AJC. She is struggling to find needed medical care in Iraq, and her family continues to confront many of the troubles that we knew they might face. Please continue to lift up this wonderful little girl and her family, and all the people of Iraq and members of our armed forces who are in harm's way. We pray for their safety, her health and for peace with justice in our world.
Yeah, me too.
Al Sharpton and Strom Thurmond might be related. Ain’t that a kick in the pants?
Only in America, folks. And I mean that.
Like all countries everywhere, the America of today is a product of its yesterdays gone before.
But our history is a particularly curious and convoluted one.
There is so much to be proud of, and so many ways that American dreams and people have made the world so much better than anyone could have imagined.
At the very same time, there are real demons of our past and deep-seated attitudes that have haunted us through the generations and are not yet entirely exorcised today.
The most interesting fact of American life is that our story really hasn’t been entirely told.
We are very much a work in progress.
Sometimes, that work gets hampered because we don’t can’t find positive models of conversation that helps and heals.
Even so, the movement that has happened in our country in the last four generations is amazing and should be celebrated.
My grandparents grew up in a world where racial lines were clearly demarcated and never to be questioned. My parents’ generation experienced the civil rights’ movement and integration. That generation bore the pain of change (whether black or white) and struggled to find a way toward that healthy conversation that didn’t end in violence and frustration. I grew up in a different world, though the mix of new and old assumptions have surrounded me throughout my life.
My sons are growing up in a truly different time. It’s not unusual to hear Haitian French, Spanish or Asian languages on the sidewalks and in the common areas of our neighborhood. All the important places of their lives are populated by a wonderful mix of people: some who look like them, and some who don’t.
At school, at church, at the neighborhood pool…they are learning that it really is the content of a person’s character that should stand as the measuring stick of their lives.
Now, I don’t mean to be Pollyanna. Already, my boys have noticed that they need lots of sunscreen at that pool…more than lots of their friends. But I swear, that’s about the extent of what skin color means for them right now.
Recently, when our three year old had some questions about the ways that people look, we asked him what color he was.
“Pink,” he said.
Sounds fine to us.
When they inevitably encounter the idea that says one skin pigmentation is somehow better than another, I believe with all my heart that they’ll reject it. Good conversation, positive friendships and healthy experiences will be the reason why.
One thing I know for sure… loud politicians will not be the reason.
I pray that history will never let Strom Thurmond’s voice stand as speaking for white people everywhere. Although some of his policies and opinions moved throughout his lifetime, he still stands in history as the icon of the “Old South,” running for President in 1948 on a segregationist ticket. He got 39 electoral votes, people.
If white folks don’t want to be judged by Strom, black folks sometimes feel the same about Rev. Al.
Here’s what I mean. Cruising channels a couple of days ago, I came across a panel discussion of African-American politicians and entertainers on TV Land, called, “That’s What I’m Talking About."
Comedian Wanda Sykes was on the panel, and so was Al Sharpton. At one point, Wanda said, “Don’t take this wrong Al, but sometimes I see you on TV, and the first thing I think is, ‘Lord, please don’t let him say something crazy.’”
Rev. Al did not look pleased.
You see, I think Al and Strom might have more in common than an ancestor. They shared a love for the spotlight, and a love-affair with mass media. Both of them could always find the camera and the microphone. Politicians at heart, publicity is like life-blood. They both wanted the seat in the Oval Office.
“I’d buy a ticket for that family reunion.” Me too.
But, I’d rather have a ticket at the kind of reunion that ought to happen in churches, that reflect our communities, every single morning.
Jesus didn’t have a lot to say about “race,” per se, but he sure did have a lot to say about crossing society’s boundaries. He touched those who were considered untouchable. He drank water given to him by a Samaritan woman. He leveled playing fields, championed unlikely heroes in his parables and dared to eat with “sinners.”
That’s you and me, all of us, no matter what SPF you need when you’re down at the pool. Thanks be to God for the good ol’ U.S. of A., warts and all. Thanks be to God for the distance we’ve traveled, and thanks to God for the journey that we will yet make together.
Take somebody’s hand, and make a different conversation ---- a different tomorrow.
Grace and Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
This Sunday our own Tim Potate will preach in both Sunday morning worship services. Tim is working through the process of candidacy for United Methodist ministry, and we’re proud to support him in every way that we can. An anonymous donor has begun a scholarship fund in Tim’s honor to support him in any educational expenses he may incur, and all are welcome to donate to that fund.
Sunday School at SOTH: Sunday School is one of the most important moments in our Life at SOTH: Between worship services, at 10:15 a.m., Sunday School classes are available for children and youth of all ages. Please make every effort to support your child’s learning of scripture and deepening of their faith in a fun and upbeat environment.
Sunday School for Adults is available in small group at The Ranch, or in the worship space, as our large group studies The Gospel of John. We use clips from a recently produced film based on the Gospel, and work hard at learning what the scripture is all about. Coffee, conversation and a solid Bible lesson, all just after or right before your Sunday worship experience. Sunday School at SOTH is worth the trip!
SOTHUMC.NET report: Thanks to all of you for the great work you’ve done inviting others to come check out our new website, www.sothumc.net! Since last Thursday, we’ve had over 200 visits, with over 1700 pageviews! Keep up the good work, and invite all your friends to check it out.
Baby Noor in today's AJC: An Update on Baby Noor ran on the front of today's AJC. She is struggling to find needed medical care in Iraq, and her family continues to confront many of the troubles that we knew they might face. Please continue to lift up this wonderful little girl and her family, and all the people of Iraq and members of our armed forces who are in harm's way. We pray for their safety, her health and for peace with justice in our world.
Feb 22, 2007
Team
Team
Know why I like baseball so much?
The hot dogs? Yeah, that’s part of it, but there’s more.
Let me count the ways:
There’s the pure, beautiful geometry of the game. Everything happens at home plate, the point of contact, then radiates outward, into expansion…fair or foul. The bases make a perfect square, set within wedge…a circle.
The moment you first walk into a major league stadium as a child and see the outfield unfold in a shade of green you didn’t know existed…it’s all over. Hooked.
There’s the first clear day of spring (like today), when the hint of warmth on the breeze reminds us of the scorching days that will follow. We unfurl like baby seedlings in the springtime sun at the crack of real wooden bats and pop of new baseballs on old leather.
Every team is a winner, and hope springs eternal. The boys with the tomahawks on their chests have a new bullpen and something to prove. Life is good.
But the thing that I love most of all about baseball is the beautiful interplay of individual effort and team achievement.
Baseball is a team sport. Nobody wins or loses games by themselves.
But baseball is also a deeply personal athletic endeavor.
The moment of confrontation between pitcher and hitter happens on a mighty individualistic plane.
One person throws the ball. One person swings that bat. Only one.
From there, anything can happen. The series of individual defensive and offensive efforts that follow begin to form a collective outcome. In the end, a team wins or loses…together.
It seems to me that life, and ministry, follows a similar track.
Truly great things happen when individuals recognize their gifts, and begin to act. No one swings the bat for anyone else (ok, I know…pinch hitters, right --- not quite a perfect analogy).
Even so, it’s rare that any one of us can even accomplish what’s truly possible without the help of some committed “others.”
I get to watch those “committed others” do the things God has called them to do and gifted them for…all the time. What a blessing that really is.
Last year, a group of individuals had an idea for future ministry at SOTH. They formed a team to do a new thing. Watching their work unfold has been a lot of fun.
Our communication team began to assess all the ways SOTH speaks its message to the world. They found the right resources, formed the right relationships, shared positive ideas and put those thoughts into action.
Today, www.sothumc.net looks a whole lot different. It’s so exciting, and I really hope that you’ll go spend some time there and see what I mean.
Our new logo and website went through multiple generations, possibilities and re-workings. Our church council members gave input and feedback. A new idea began to emerge.
The red and black colors are from our United Methodist denomination, as are the symbols of cross and flame. The design communicates energy and vitality, one of SOTH’s defining characteristics. The “path” metaphor says so much about our church: we don’t judge folks, we invite them. We don’t think we’ve got it all figured out, but we’re convinced that God does. Our path points to the cross, and together we move toward life, grace, redemption and new hope.
Life is good. So is the team.
Today, you’re not just “on deck,” you’re “in the box.” Pick up the bat, and when the moment comes, swing it like you mean it. God will do the rest. Each individual effort makes us part of the team. Together, we’ll do more than we’d ever thought possible.
Grace & Peace, and welcome to Lent ---
that great season of preparation and possibility,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH: Send your friends to our new site! Let’s See What We Can Do!
Everybody please take a minute and check out our new site, www.sothumc.net! Even better, forward our address on to the folks in your address book, and let’s see how many hits we can generate this week! We’ve got a brand-new fancy-schmancy counter, and we want to use it. We’ll let you know how many folks you sent our way next week!
Many, many thanks are due to all the people who served on the communication team last year, and to the good folks at Details Communications who designed our site and the other new print and electronic tools that you’ve seen and that will be forthcoming. The team was chaired by John Sheffield with awesome creative input from Jeff Seymour and many hours from our new webmaster, Andrea Vantrees. Great job, team!
SOTH Land Update: This past Sunday, the members of SOTH voted nearly unanimously to place 24 acres of property under contract for purchase! Our new location will be just west of our present one, ½ mile west, down Dorsett Shoals Road. This is only the beginning of a process that will play out over many, many more months to come. Please keep SOTH in your prayers and know that we always appreciate any help you have to give. We’ll keep you posted.
Congrats to Kimberly and Scott Samples on the birth of their new baby girl Daegan, born yesterday morning!
Know why I like baseball so much?
The hot dogs? Yeah, that’s part of it, but there’s more.
Let me count the ways:
There’s the pure, beautiful geometry of the game. Everything happens at home plate, the point of contact, then radiates outward, into expansion…fair or foul. The bases make a perfect square, set within wedge…a circle.
The moment you first walk into a major league stadium as a child and see the outfield unfold in a shade of green you didn’t know existed…it’s all over. Hooked.
There’s the first clear day of spring (like today), when the hint of warmth on the breeze reminds us of the scorching days that will follow. We unfurl like baby seedlings in the springtime sun at the crack of real wooden bats and pop of new baseballs on old leather.
Every team is a winner, and hope springs eternal. The boys with the tomahawks on their chests have a new bullpen and something to prove. Life is good.
But the thing that I love most of all about baseball is the beautiful interplay of individual effort and team achievement.
Baseball is a team sport. Nobody wins or loses games by themselves.
But baseball is also a deeply personal athletic endeavor.
The moment of confrontation between pitcher and hitter happens on a mighty individualistic plane.
One person throws the ball. One person swings that bat. Only one.
From there, anything can happen. The series of individual defensive and offensive efforts that follow begin to form a collective outcome. In the end, a team wins or loses…together.
It seems to me that life, and ministry, follows a similar track.
Truly great things happen when individuals recognize their gifts, and begin to act. No one swings the bat for anyone else (ok, I know…pinch hitters, right --- not quite a perfect analogy).
Even so, it’s rare that any one of us can even accomplish what’s truly possible without the help of some committed “others.”
I get to watch those “committed others” do the things God has called them to do and gifted them for…all the time. What a blessing that really is.
Last year, a group of individuals had an idea for future ministry at SOTH. They formed a team to do a new thing. Watching their work unfold has been a lot of fun.
Our communication team began to assess all the ways SOTH speaks its message to the world. They found the right resources, formed the right relationships, shared positive ideas and put those thoughts into action.
Today, www.sothumc.net looks a whole lot different. It’s so exciting, and I really hope that you’ll go spend some time there and see what I mean.
Our new logo and website went through multiple generations, possibilities and re-workings. Our church council members gave input and feedback. A new idea began to emerge.
The red and black colors are from our United Methodist denomination, as are the symbols of cross and flame. The design communicates energy and vitality, one of SOTH’s defining characteristics. The “path” metaphor says so much about our church: we don’t judge folks, we invite them. We don’t think we’ve got it all figured out, but we’re convinced that God does. Our path points to the cross, and together we move toward life, grace, redemption and new hope.
Life is good. So is the team.
Today, you’re not just “on deck,” you’re “in the box.” Pick up the bat, and when the moment comes, swing it like you mean it. God will do the rest. Each individual effort makes us part of the team. Together, we’ll do more than we’d ever thought possible.
Grace & Peace, and welcome to Lent ---
that great season of preparation and possibility,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH: Send your friends to our new site! Let’s See What We Can Do!
Everybody please take a minute and check out our new site, www.sothumc.net! Even better, forward our address on to the folks in your address book, and let’s see how many hits we can generate this week! We’ve got a brand-new fancy-schmancy counter, and we want to use it. We’ll let you know how many folks you sent our way next week!
Many, many thanks are due to all the people who served on the communication team last year, and to the good folks at Details Communications who designed our site and the other new print and electronic tools that you’ve seen and that will be forthcoming. The team was chaired by John Sheffield with awesome creative input from Jeff Seymour and many hours from our new webmaster, Andrea Vantrees. Great job, team!
SOTH Land Update: This past Sunday, the members of SOTH voted nearly unanimously to place 24 acres of property under contract for purchase! Our new location will be just west of our present one, ½ mile west, down Dorsett Shoals Road. This is only the beginning of a process that will play out over many, many more months to come. Please keep SOTH in your prayers and know that we always appreciate any help you have to give. We’ll keep you posted.
Congrats to Kimberly and Scott Samples on the birth of their new baby girl Daegan, born yesterday morning!
Feb 14, 2007
Open
Yesterday I seized the opportunity to run home at midday and grab some lunch.
For those of you who do the Atlanta commuter thing, please know that I do appreciate how wonderful a luxury this option really is.
I pulled into our neighborhood, headed down the street, and pulled into the driveway.
I stopped the car, just as I’ve done hundreds of times, hit the garage-door opener on my visor, and got out.
As I stood there in my driveway, what I saw just made me laugh out loud.
My garage was beautiful. Pristine, in fact. Immaculate. Graceful. Invitational to the act of parking.
It had gotten that way the day before. That’s when I used most of my day off to clean and organize it.
Then, I forgot it happened.
I should mention that a pretty major rain storm was moving through Douglasville as I stood in the driveway beside my vehicle. Literally, the heavens were opened and insight descended from heaven. Really, it was just raining on my head.
And I stood there, laughing.
All that work and energy from the day before…it was done with one purpose in mind. I was determined to do the unthinkable. The holy grail of suburban subdivision life…park in the garage. Yes, park…in…the…garage.
I had put up extra shelves. I’d thrown away tons of stuff. I’d finally put Christmas completely to rest until next year. I’d run the blower and experienced the joy of seeing dust and debris find its way out of our garage to settle into the greater world at large. I was one with the storage universe and created quite a little Garden of Eden.
Then, the next day, I parked in the driveway.
Did I mention it was raining? Habit can be so strong.
Sometimes, we park in the driveway when we don’t have to.
Have you ever had a Sunday church experience that just really hit home, touched your heart, lit a fire and opened the heavens?
I have, and I’ve seen others experience the same.
Then we park in the driveway come Monday morning. What was so real, so strongly desired and yearned for just a short time before so easily gives way to our concept of “life as usual.”
“I can’t park in my garage,” we tell ourselves, “because it’s full of stuff.”
Maybe. Maybe not.
But what we believe about it matters most.
Here’s what I mean: the grace of God is the most powerful thing in the universe. God loves us. He forgives us and stands completely ready to give us abundant life.
I’m not making that up, I have it on good authority
John 10 (The Message):
Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. "I'll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn't listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
There have probably been moments when you’ve known that truth completely, and it’s resonated deeply in your heart.
Then, because you’re human just like me, you’ve proudly driven your car right up to the garage door and put it in park.
The habit of smallness can be hard to break.
Break it. Dare to believe.
Open that door, and drive right in. God is ready.
Grace and Peace --- and Happy Valentine’s Day!
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Church Conference to approve land purchase, this Sunday 10 AM.
Thanks to everyone who participated in our conversation about buying property last Sunday. This Sunday, there will be one worship service only, at 10 AM, so that as many of us as possible can be present together at one time. Our Church Council has recommended the purchase of property close to our existing location and we will again present that this week in a “Church Conference” for up or down vote of the congregation. This is an exciting time in the life of our church, and our vision of the future is beginning to come more and more clear. Be sure to come out and be part of this great day.
Gang activity informational session last night at SOTH: Thanks to Mike Mulcare, our District 3 County Commissioner, and to all the county officials who were on hand last night at SOTH to provide information on gang activity in Douglas County. We were proud to serve as the venue for this important meeting, and it was awesome to see 425 concerned citizens come together (cramming every square inch of our property) to deal proactively with a problem that threatens us. We heard great words from law enforcement, elected officials and Juvenile Court Judge Walker. All of them emphasized the important role that churches and other communities of faith can play in providing direction and stability for our children and youth. Thanks to everyone who participated.
Servant Evangelism Update: Thanks to Tim Potate, Lamar Gilstrap and the many, many volunteers who organized our servant evangelism event this week. Thanks also to Chick-Fil-A and Jolty’s, who provided great coupons for our valentine bags that were distributed at the Target shopping center and at Wellstar hospital. A group of about a dozen SOTH’ers gathered and extended the grace of God to those who were out and about doing their shopping. Response was wonderful and great time was had by all. Look for details of our next even in March, which promises to be one of our best yet!
For those of you who do the Atlanta commuter thing, please know that I do appreciate how wonderful a luxury this option really is.
I pulled into our neighborhood, headed down the street, and pulled into the driveway.
I stopped the car, just as I’ve done hundreds of times, hit the garage-door opener on my visor, and got out.
As I stood there in my driveway, what I saw just made me laugh out loud.
My garage was beautiful. Pristine, in fact. Immaculate. Graceful. Invitational to the act of parking.
It had gotten that way the day before. That’s when I used most of my day off to clean and organize it.
Then, I forgot it happened.
I should mention that a pretty major rain storm was moving through Douglasville as I stood in the driveway beside my vehicle. Literally, the heavens were opened and insight descended from heaven. Really, it was just raining on my head.
And I stood there, laughing.
All that work and energy from the day before…it was done with one purpose in mind. I was determined to do the unthinkable. The holy grail of suburban subdivision life…park in the garage. Yes, park…in…the…garage.
I had put up extra shelves. I’d thrown away tons of stuff. I’d finally put Christmas completely to rest until next year. I’d run the blower and experienced the joy of seeing dust and debris find its way out of our garage to settle into the greater world at large. I was one with the storage universe and created quite a little Garden of Eden.
Then, the next day, I parked in the driveway.
Did I mention it was raining? Habit can be so strong.
Sometimes, we park in the driveway when we don’t have to.
Have you ever had a Sunday church experience that just really hit home, touched your heart, lit a fire and opened the heavens?
I have, and I’ve seen others experience the same.
Then we park in the driveway come Monday morning. What was so real, so strongly desired and yearned for just a short time before so easily gives way to our concept of “life as usual.”
“I can’t park in my garage,” we tell ourselves, “because it’s full of stuff.”
Maybe. Maybe not.
But what we believe about it matters most.
Here’s what I mean: the grace of God is the most powerful thing in the universe. God loves us. He forgives us and stands completely ready to give us abundant life.
I’m not making that up, I have it on good authority
John 10 (The Message):
Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. "I'll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn't listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
There have probably been moments when you’ve known that truth completely, and it’s resonated deeply in your heart.
Then, because you’re human just like me, you’ve proudly driven your car right up to the garage door and put it in park.
The habit of smallness can be hard to break.
Break it. Dare to believe.
Open that door, and drive right in. God is ready.
Grace and Peace --- and Happy Valentine’s Day!
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Church Conference to approve land purchase, this Sunday 10 AM.
Thanks to everyone who participated in our conversation about buying property last Sunday. This Sunday, there will be one worship service only, at 10 AM, so that as many of us as possible can be present together at one time. Our Church Council has recommended the purchase of property close to our existing location and we will again present that this week in a “Church Conference” for up or down vote of the congregation. This is an exciting time in the life of our church, and our vision of the future is beginning to come more and more clear. Be sure to come out and be part of this great day.
Gang activity informational session last night at SOTH: Thanks to Mike Mulcare, our District 3 County Commissioner, and to all the county officials who were on hand last night at SOTH to provide information on gang activity in Douglas County. We were proud to serve as the venue for this important meeting, and it was awesome to see 425 concerned citizens come together (cramming every square inch of our property) to deal proactively with a problem that threatens us. We heard great words from law enforcement, elected officials and Juvenile Court Judge Walker. All of them emphasized the important role that churches and other communities of faith can play in providing direction and stability for our children and youth. Thanks to everyone who participated.
Servant Evangelism Update: Thanks to Tim Potate, Lamar Gilstrap and the many, many volunteers who organized our servant evangelism event this week. Thanks also to Chick-Fil-A and Jolty’s, who provided great coupons for our valentine bags that were distributed at the Target shopping center and at Wellstar hospital. A group of about a dozen SOTH’ers gathered and extended the grace of God to those who were out and about doing their shopping. Response was wonderful and great time was had by all. Look for details of our next even in March, which promises to be one of our best yet!
Feb 8, 2007
Talk
I stood in the little hole-in-the-wall savoring the aromas that wafted their way through the damp air of Athens, Georgia in June.
“Fried” flavors of all kinds mingled with down-home treasures: turnip greens, black-eyed peas, cornbread, peach cobbler, mashed potatoes, green beans, macaroni-and-cheese (of course declared a vegetable in the South).
It was my first time in the one-room establishment, though it certainly has not been my last. Since it was my first, I didn’t know what the regulars already knew and anticipated with some zeal…a rather odd initiation was about to take place.
As my turn came to advance to the counter for placement of my order, I prepared myself to say with all soul-food credibility, “friend chicken, cornbread, double-greens.”
I never got the chance. Before I could speak, the mountain of a man standing behind the counter looked at me with an expression that I read as a curious mixture of boredom and hostility.
He opened his mouth and bellowed: COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN!!!!!
No one had ever yelled, “communication” toward my general person before, so I didn’t really have a good construct to apply as I feebly grasped for an appropriate response.
A regular behind me took pity on my plight. “Tell him what you want,” he said.
“Uh…fried chicken, cornbread, black-eyed peas (I thought the extra credibility was needed at this point), double greens and sweet tea.”
His response?
“AUTOMATIC!”
…And with that, I perceived that I had been dismissed.
Surely enough, my food came up “automatic,” as it appeared in a window adjoining the counter. I paid, and jockeyed against 30 other patrons for one of about 24 seats in the house.
As I ate the truly incredible food (crispy on the outside, moist on the inside) and talked with friends about the history of the place (which I already knew a little something about), the Communication/Automatic dialogue began to come more clear (sort of).
You see, those two words are Weaver D’s trademarks.
Weaver D’s has become an institution in Athens. Famous diners sustained by his deeply southern cooking have included the B-52’s, R.E.M., and Widespread Panic.
Being a true aficionado of both R.E.M. and friend chicken, Weaver D’s and Adam Roberts was a match made in heaven.
The deal was sealed for me when I saw Weaver’s motto on the sign out front.
“Automatic for the People.”
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” I thought.
You R.E.M. fans out there know this was the catchphrase the band took for one of its greatest and most famous albums. Affixed to the wall inside Weaver’s still humble facility was a huge picture of the restaurateur and his mother, taken at the Grammy’s, the night that “Automatic for the People” won Album of the Year.
How cool is that? Pretty stinking cool.
It was hilarious to watch the line of people approach the counter, each welcomed with the loud request for “COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN!!!”
Well…he does make a pretty valid point, you know. All good things, even fried chicken at Weaver D’s, do have to begin with communication.
That's what my all day meeting on Tuesday was all about.
You see, once a year, a series of meetings takes place around the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church. They’re called the “Clergy Days Apart.” Pools of about 200 clergy at a time meet together for the day. Our Bishop is there, as are many District Superintendents and other leaders of our Conference.
Always, there is an inspirational speaker, and the aim of the day is continued spiritual and professional growth. 200 people who do COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN for a living, and this year, we were invited to think about that very topic.
“Today,” our guest leader began, “we will engage in some counter-cultural activity.”
I was intrigued.
“We’re going to speak to each other from our hearts, but even more importantly…we’re going to really listen to each other.”
I know. There is inherently a “groan” factor for most people in this kind of thing, yours truly included. It’s all a little touchy-feely, isn’t it?
That’s exactly why it’s counter-cultural. It's hard work that most folks don't want to do.
The issues for the day were fascinating. We were to “communicate” with each other about the things we pastors usually leave for discussion only amongst our closest friends.
“What has your experience of this Annual Conference been?”
“What do you think of our appointive process?”
“What could be done to increase trust among the clergy of our conference?”
“What will you do to open lines of communication with your colleagues and build trust this year?”
If you don’t know what those questions mean, let me give you a lesson in Methodese (that’s the native language of United Methodists) 101.
Imagine that all of the accountants --- that is to say the licensed, accredited CPA’s from Augusta, westward to Lagrange, and north to Tennessee lived in the same, big professional pond.
What I mean is, imagine that those CPA’s are employed in a closed system. There are 1000 CPA’s and 1000 CPA positions. There is really no leaving that system, and entry from outsiders is somewhat suspect.
All 1000 positions are placed by a group of 12 Super-CPA’s with final authority resting in the hands of one Super-Super-CPA (and, I need to be nice, because that Super-Super CPA, if he existed, just hypothetically, I mean --- maybe reads this blog).
Those 1000 positions range dramatically in terms of community context, “standard of living,” and pay-level. Oh yeah, and all 1000 people know what the other 999 get paid.
How would that work out?
There could be issues of trust, to say the least. There could be some politics…some attempts to manipulate the system. There could be some bitterness when folks don’t get what they want, or what they think they deserve. There could be some hurt.
Welcome to the clergy life of the North Georgia (and every other) United Methodist Conference.
Now don’t get me wrong…I’m not so cynical as to think that my clergy colleagues only care about what they get paid, where they live and what prestige their churches can generate. Without a doubt, some care more than others. Some do attempt to manipulate the system. All of us are vulnerable to those temptations when we believe that our lives, and our families’ lives are on the line.
We really do trust those making the decisions to do so prayerfully, earnestly and honestly. We believe that they do, and we even go so far as to say that God ultimately gets us all where we need to be. But we don't talk about it. It's uncomfortable to acknowledge the tension, the mistrust, the difficulty.
That’s why communication is counter-cultural.
That’s why getting invited to really, really communicate ---- about hard, uncomfortable things, just sort of takes one aback.
It’s like getting yelled at by a large man who stands behind the counter, bored yet aggressive.
COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN!!!!
We need to talk. And listen. Nobody does that nowadays. We’re the church…we could be the first.
By the end of that day, a day when I’d rather have been busy doing the things I “needed” to do, I’d met 6 colleagues I didn’t previously know…and now I do. Not only that, I know their stories, and as was said at the seminar, “you can’t be afraid of someone if you know their story.”
Ephesians 4:29 says, “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up,building up faith as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.”
Let’s talk in a way that builds up. There is need, and we’ve got the time. Giving grace is what Life at SOTH is all about.
Grace & Peace Everybody ---
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Land Acquisition Update: We’ll talk about the property that we’re proposing for purchase, this Sunday morning between worship services: 10:15 AM in the worship space. Our Church Conference vote is planned for next Sunday, February 18th, with one worship service only --- 10:00 AM.
“Bib” Overall Sunday at SOTH: This Sunday is also “bib” Sunday in honor of our own overall-wearing icon, Wendell Felch. It’s Wendell’s birthday, so wear ‘em if you’ve got ‘em in honor of Wendell! Yep, Wendell even gave Adam his very first pair of “Liberty’s,” and he’ll be wearing ‘em in fine style.
2006 New Members: Well, we’ve just passed the end of January, the time of year when all United Methodist Churches have to submit their “year end” reports. We wanted to share with you the impressive list of those who have joined the SOTH family this year, 59 altogether!
Baptisms:
02/26: Kasey Brelsford
02/26: Leah Brelsford
03/05: Cierra Fountain
03/05: Brina Davis
03/19: Shane Meador
03/19: Tammy Meador
03/19: Erin Meador
03/19: Luke Meador
04/23: Faith Wyche
05/14: Tyler Rahn
05/14: Sam Rahn
05/14: James Rahn
06/18: Kenneth James Price (KJ)
06/18: Jorden Ethan Murphy
06/18: Tristen Ryann Murphy
09/10: Kurt Meador
11/19: Jenny Archer
11/19: Aaron Vantrees
11/19: Bobby Cook
11/19: Jessica Murfree
12/10: Malachi Lightcap
New Members (By Transfer)
01/08 – Kevin Wall
01/08 – Denise Wall
01/08 – David Vaughn
01/08 – Dianne Vaughn
03/19 - David Pearson
03/19 - Ashley Bedosky
03/19 – Mike Bedosky
07/23 – Rocky Barnes
07/23 - Susan Barnes
08/06 – Virgil (Ike) Eisenmann
08/06 – Liz Eisenmann
08/20 – Patricia Perry
08/20 – Amanda Bunday
08/20 – Phyllis Bunday
08/20 – Maria Davis
08/20 – Sharon Hudson
08/27 – Joshua Taylor
08/27 – Jennifer Taylor
09/24 - Karen Suttles Hubbard
09/24 - Mike Hubbard
11/19 – Joel Kilthau
11/19 – Lisa Kilthau
12/24 – Chuck Leake
12/24 – Joy Leake
12/24 – Randy Leake
12/24 – Ryan Leake (Midway UMC)
New Members (By Confession of Faith)
01/15 – Monica Ellis-Witt
01/15 – Tony Ellis-Witt
01/15 - Devin Ellis
01/15 – Cameron Witt
02/26 – Brian Brelsford
02/26 – Ginger Brelsford
03/19 – Tammy Meador
03/19 - Shane Meador
03/05 – Cierra Fountain
03/05 - Brina Davis
04/16 – Lynn Cook
04/16 – Wendell Felch
05/14 – Tyler Rahn
05/23 - Faith Wyche
06/18 – Angela Price
06/18 – Kenneth James Price
08/20 – Harry Shore
08/20 – Angie Shore
08/20 – Samantha Smith
08/20 – Sara Loehne
10/08 – Brandy Murphy
11/19 – Jennifer Archer (Confirmation)
11/19 – Bobby Cooke (Confirmation)
11/19 – Briana Fountain (Confimation)
11/19 – Derrick Fountain, Jr. (Confimation)
11/19 – Katelyn Price Gibson (Confirmation)
11/19 – Joshua Henry Kilthau (Confimration)
11/19 – Erin Lena Meador (Confirmation)
11/19 – Jessica Rachel Murfree (Confimation)
11/19 – Audrey Leigh Reid (Confirmation)
11/19 – Kelsie Ann Seymour (Confimation)
11/19 – Aaron Jamal Vantrees (Confirmation)
Preparatory Members
Trey Bedosky
Steven Bedosky
Madeline Wall
Sam Wall
Kasey Brelsford
Leah Brelsford
Luke Meador
Jorden Murphy
Tristen Murphy
Martha Jo Barnes
Sam Rahn
James Rahn
Tyler Shore
Brandon Shore
Chelsea Shore
Angel Shore
Jessica Suttles
Jake Suttles
New members for January, 2007 include Anna Garner, Joyce Pierson and Alex, Angie and Grey Walker.
Thanks be to God for his great work in our community in the last 12 months!
Prayer Concern for Honduras Outreach, Inc:
Many of you know that I have traveled multiple times in mission to Honduras with a wonderful organization, HOI, Inc. My heart, along with thousands throughout North Georgia and Honduras, has been broken this week by the news of the loss of three missionaries in an accident while working in a remote village.
In addition, my wonderful friend Lucas, who was here in Douglasville and visiting briefly in our home over Christmas, was injured badly as well. Lucas has suffered severe leg injuries and is currently hospitalized in Tegucigalpa. Our prayers are with all who have been involved, for the people of San Esteban and Olancho province Honduras and for all the leadership and volunteers of HOI.
These have been dark days for those of us who know and love that ministry and those it serves. May God’s presence be known in that ministry, now even more than ever. Thanks to all of you for supporting HOI with your prayers, and for lifting prayers for Lucas.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
“Fried” flavors of all kinds mingled with down-home treasures: turnip greens, black-eyed peas, cornbread, peach cobbler, mashed potatoes, green beans, macaroni-and-cheese (of course declared a vegetable in the South).
It was my first time in the one-room establishment, though it certainly has not been my last. Since it was my first, I didn’t know what the regulars already knew and anticipated with some zeal…a rather odd initiation was about to take place.
As my turn came to advance to the counter for placement of my order, I prepared myself to say with all soul-food credibility, “friend chicken, cornbread, double-greens.”
I never got the chance. Before I could speak, the mountain of a man standing behind the counter looked at me with an expression that I read as a curious mixture of boredom and hostility.
He opened his mouth and bellowed: COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN!!!!!
No one had ever yelled, “communication” toward my general person before, so I didn’t really have a good construct to apply as I feebly grasped for an appropriate response.
A regular behind me took pity on my plight. “Tell him what you want,” he said.
“Uh…fried chicken, cornbread, black-eyed peas (I thought the extra credibility was needed at this point), double greens and sweet tea.”
His response?
“AUTOMATIC!”
…And with that, I perceived that I had been dismissed.
Surely enough, my food came up “automatic,” as it appeared in a window adjoining the counter. I paid, and jockeyed against 30 other patrons for one of about 24 seats in the house.
As I ate the truly incredible food (crispy on the outside, moist on the inside) and talked with friends about the history of the place (which I already knew a little something about), the Communication/Automatic dialogue began to come more clear (sort of).
You see, those two words are Weaver D’s trademarks.
Weaver D’s has become an institution in Athens. Famous diners sustained by his deeply southern cooking have included the B-52’s, R.E.M., and Widespread Panic.
Being a true aficionado of both R.E.M. and friend chicken, Weaver D’s and Adam Roberts was a match made in heaven.
The deal was sealed for me when I saw Weaver’s motto on the sign out front.
“Automatic for the People.”
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” I thought.
You R.E.M. fans out there know this was the catchphrase the band took for one of its greatest and most famous albums. Affixed to the wall inside Weaver’s still humble facility was a huge picture of the restaurateur and his mother, taken at the Grammy’s, the night that “Automatic for the People” won Album of the Year.
How cool is that? Pretty stinking cool.
It was hilarious to watch the line of people approach the counter, each welcomed with the loud request for “COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN!!!”
Well…he does make a pretty valid point, you know. All good things, even fried chicken at Weaver D’s, do have to begin with communication.
That's what my all day meeting on Tuesday was all about.
You see, once a year, a series of meetings takes place around the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church. They’re called the “Clergy Days Apart.” Pools of about 200 clergy at a time meet together for the day. Our Bishop is there, as are many District Superintendents and other leaders of our Conference.
Always, there is an inspirational speaker, and the aim of the day is continued spiritual and professional growth. 200 people who do COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN for a living, and this year, we were invited to think about that very topic.
“Today,” our guest leader began, “we will engage in some counter-cultural activity.”
I was intrigued.
“We’re going to speak to each other from our hearts, but even more importantly…we’re going to really listen to each other.”
I know. There is inherently a “groan” factor for most people in this kind of thing, yours truly included. It’s all a little touchy-feely, isn’t it?
That’s exactly why it’s counter-cultural. It's hard work that most folks don't want to do.
The issues for the day were fascinating. We were to “communicate” with each other about the things we pastors usually leave for discussion only amongst our closest friends.
“What has your experience of this Annual Conference been?”
“What do you think of our appointive process?”
“What could be done to increase trust among the clergy of our conference?”
“What will you do to open lines of communication with your colleagues and build trust this year?”
If you don’t know what those questions mean, let me give you a lesson in Methodese (that’s the native language of United Methodists) 101.
Imagine that all of the accountants --- that is to say the licensed, accredited CPA’s from Augusta, westward to Lagrange, and north to Tennessee lived in the same, big professional pond.
What I mean is, imagine that those CPA’s are employed in a closed system. There are 1000 CPA’s and 1000 CPA positions. There is really no leaving that system, and entry from outsiders is somewhat suspect.
All 1000 positions are placed by a group of 12 Super-CPA’s with final authority resting in the hands of one Super-Super-CPA (and, I need to be nice, because that Super-Super CPA, if he existed, just hypothetically, I mean --- maybe reads this blog).
Those 1000 positions range dramatically in terms of community context, “standard of living,” and pay-level. Oh yeah, and all 1000 people know what the other 999 get paid.
How would that work out?
There could be issues of trust, to say the least. There could be some politics…some attempts to manipulate the system. There could be some bitterness when folks don’t get what they want, or what they think they deserve. There could be some hurt.
Welcome to the clergy life of the North Georgia (and every other) United Methodist Conference.
Now don’t get me wrong…I’m not so cynical as to think that my clergy colleagues only care about what they get paid, where they live and what prestige their churches can generate. Without a doubt, some care more than others. Some do attempt to manipulate the system. All of us are vulnerable to those temptations when we believe that our lives, and our families’ lives are on the line.
We really do trust those making the decisions to do so prayerfully, earnestly and honestly. We believe that they do, and we even go so far as to say that God ultimately gets us all where we need to be. But we don't talk about it. It's uncomfortable to acknowledge the tension, the mistrust, the difficulty.
That’s why communication is counter-cultural.
That’s why getting invited to really, really communicate ---- about hard, uncomfortable things, just sort of takes one aback.
It’s like getting yelled at by a large man who stands behind the counter, bored yet aggressive.
COE-MYOON-UH-KAY-SHUN!!!!
We need to talk. And listen. Nobody does that nowadays. We’re the church…we could be the first.
By the end of that day, a day when I’d rather have been busy doing the things I “needed” to do, I’d met 6 colleagues I didn’t previously know…and now I do. Not only that, I know their stories, and as was said at the seminar, “you can’t be afraid of someone if you know their story.”
Ephesians 4:29 says, “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up,building up faith as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.”
Let’s talk in a way that builds up. There is need, and we’ve got the time. Giving grace is what Life at SOTH is all about.
Grace & Peace Everybody ---
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Land Acquisition Update: We’ll talk about the property that we’re proposing for purchase, this Sunday morning between worship services: 10:15 AM in the worship space. Our Church Conference vote is planned for next Sunday, February 18th, with one worship service only --- 10:00 AM.
“Bib” Overall Sunday at SOTH: This Sunday is also “bib” Sunday in honor of our own overall-wearing icon, Wendell Felch. It’s Wendell’s birthday, so wear ‘em if you’ve got ‘em in honor of Wendell! Yep, Wendell even gave Adam his very first pair of “Liberty’s,” and he’ll be wearing ‘em in fine style.
2006 New Members: Well, we’ve just passed the end of January, the time of year when all United Methodist Churches have to submit their “year end” reports. We wanted to share with you the impressive list of those who have joined the SOTH family this year, 59 altogether!
Baptisms:
02/26: Kasey Brelsford
02/26: Leah Brelsford
03/05: Cierra Fountain
03/05: Brina Davis
03/19: Shane Meador
03/19: Tammy Meador
03/19: Erin Meador
03/19: Luke Meador
04/23: Faith Wyche
05/14: Tyler Rahn
05/14: Sam Rahn
05/14: James Rahn
06/18: Kenneth James Price (KJ)
06/18: Jorden Ethan Murphy
06/18: Tristen Ryann Murphy
09/10: Kurt Meador
11/19: Jenny Archer
11/19: Aaron Vantrees
11/19: Bobby Cook
11/19: Jessica Murfree
12/10: Malachi Lightcap
New Members (By Transfer)
01/08 – Kevin Wall
01/08 – Denise Wall
01/08 – David Vaughn
01/08 – Dianne Vaughn
03/19 - David Pearson
03/19 - Ashley Bedosky
03/19 – Mike Bedosky
07/23 – Rocky Barnes
07/23 - Susan Barnes
08/06 – Virgil (Ike) Eisenmann
08/06 – Liz Eisenmann
08/20 – Patricia Perry
08/20 – Amanda Bunday
08/20 – Phyllis Bunday
08/20 – Maria Davis
08/20 – Sharon Hudson
08/27 – Joshua Taylor
08/27 – Jennifer Taylor
09/24 - Karen Suttles Hubbard
09/24 - Mike Hubbard
11/19 – Joel Kilthau
11/19 – Lisa Kilthau
12/24 – Chuck Leake
12/24 – Joy Leake
12/24 – Randy Leake
12/24 – Ryan Leake (Midway UMC)
New Members (By Confession of Faith)
01/15 – Monica Ellis-Witt
01/15 – Tony Ellis-Witt
01/15 - Devin Ellis
01/15 – Cameron Witt
02/26 – Brian Brelsford
02/26 – Ginger Brelsford
03/19 – Tammy Meador
03/19 - Shane Meador
03/05 – Cierra Fountain
03/05 - Brina Davis
04/16 – Lynn Cook
04/16 – Wendell Felch
05/14 – Tyler Rahn
05/23 - Faith Wyche
06/18 – Angela Price
06/18 – Kenneth James Price
08/20 – Harry Shore
08/20 – Angie Shore
08/20 – Samantha Smith
08/20 – Sara Loehne
10/08 – Brandy Murphy
11/19 – Jennifer Archer (Confirmation)
11/19 – Bobby Cooke (Confirmation)
11/19 – Briana Fountain (Confimation)
11/19 – Derrick Fountain, Jr. (Confimation)
11/19 – Katelyn Price Gibson (Confirmation)
11/19 – Joshua Henry Kilthau (Confimration)
11/19 – Erin Lena Meador (Confirmation)
11/19 – Jessica Rachel Murfree (Confimation)
11/19 – Audrey Leigh Reid (Confirmation)
11/19 – Kelsie Ann Seymour (Confimation)
11/19 – Aaron Jamal Vantrees (Confirmation)
Preparatory Members
Trey Bedosky
Steven Bedosky
Madeline Wall
Sam Wall
Kasey Brelsford
Leah Brelsford
Luke Meador
Jorden Murphy
Tristen Murphy
Martha Jo Barnes
Sam Rahn
James Rahn
Tyler Shore
Brandon Shore
Chelsea Shore
Angel Shore
Jessica Suttles
Jake Suttles
New members for January, 2007 include Anna Garner, Joyce Pierson and Alex, Angie and Grey Walker.
Thanks be to God for his great work in our community in the last 12 months!
Prayer Concern for Honduras Outreach, Inc:
Many of you know that I have traveled multiple times in mission to Honduras with a wonderful organization, HOI, Inc. My heart, along with thousands throughout North Georgia and Honduras, has been broken this week by the news of the loss of three missionaries in an accident while working in a remote village.
In addition, my wonderful friend Lucas, who was here in Douglasville and visiting briefly in our home over Christmas, was injured badly as well. Lucas has suffered severe leg injuries and is currently hospitalized in Tegucigalpa. Our prayers are with all who have been involved, for the people of San Esteban and Olancho province Honduras and for all the leadership and volunteers of HOI.
These have been dark days for those of us who know and love that ministry and those it serves. May God’s presence be known in that ministry, now even more than ever. Thanks to all of you for supporting HOI with your prayers, and for lifting prayers for Lucas.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
Feb 1, 2007
Rain
We woke up this morning to rain.
We had hoped for something more.
Don’t get me wrong. I can savor the awesome, early morning sound of rain on the rooftop as well as any tender-hearted singer/songwriter type out there.
But we were hoping for something more. Something white and fluffy. Something sticking to the ground, willing to stay with us for a few hours of exquisite, government-sanctioned downtime.
We were looking for a snow day. It didn’t happen.
Instead, we got rain, by the buckets full. Cold rain, 34 degree rain. A few measley degrees colder, and we’d be celebrating like the folks in Blairsville this morning.
Blairsville!!!!!!!!!
The worst part came at about a quarter till seven, when we had to wake our sleeping first grader. “Did it snow?” he asked, still warm and groggy from his long winter’s nap.
“No. It just rained. There’s gonna be school.”
With a tear in his eye, he got up and dutifully got ready to take on the day.
Disappointment can be a bitter pill. Especially when you turn on the local news and see the scornful radar displayed in shades of white, pink and green.
Douglasville? All green, baby. Rain.
It’s tough to see the hateful truth played out in your living room in living color. God is snowing on the people just to your north when you’re a Southerner so close to the holy grail of a “snow day.”
If you’re from Minnesota, there’s no way you can understand the concept of disappointment in not getting ice or snow. You have to be from the land of “I need to get to the grocery store NOW to get milk, eggs and bread,” to understand.
And so, I suspect this blog greets many of you in wet, cold and less-than-festive moods this morning.
Maybe this will help.
This is one of my favorite time of year for TV, even though I hate to admit it.
It’s American Idol audition time, and it’s compelling TV because the drama of disappointment is perfectly played out for the audience.
If you’re not among the 40 million Americans who watch the yearly, amateur singing competition, then you’ve missed some quite wondrous moments of entertainment.
With each initial audition, we witness the birth of hope and possibility, and its growth into full-blown joy or deepest despair.
Phrases like, “I’m going to Hollywood!!!” or “Dawg, singing --- not your thing” are well-known to Idol fans.
Without fail, each episode showcases moments of disappointment. Potential contestants will have hoped for something more than they found in the judges’ reactions. The tone-deaf, ignorant of their missing skill sets, will learn the harsh news --- they absolutely cannot sing.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but…” Simon Cowell will say, and you always know something amazingly rude is about to come next.
When asked about his penchant for crushing the untalented with his brutal honesty, and whether he ever feels bad for telling the truth, Simon said, “"No, what I am doing is kind by telling people who are useless 'Do something that you're good at'. So I would only feel guilt if I misled somebody who was terrible."
That’s how disappointment works, you know.
Sometimes, life takes a Simon-esque turn. “Look,” life says, “you thought something else was going to happen. It’s not. Find another way.”
Obviously, some disappointments are harder to take than others. A lost snow day can be forgotten by lunch. A lost job, a broken relationship, a crashed dream…these take more time and work for healing to happen.
But it can happen. Disappointment means a new direction, and that new direction can be better than any we’d ever imagined.
“Dawg…” sometimes singing’s just not your thing. Something else is.
Psalm 31 reminds us:
Blessed be the Lord, for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me when I was beset as a city under siege. I had said in my alarm, ‘I am driven farcut off from your sight.’ But you heard my supplications when I cried out to you for help."
Sometimes we wish for snow…and God sends it to Blairsville. You know what I mean.
Life moves, and turns, and the road rolls out before us, or maybe even drops, for just a moment, from beneath us. Don’t give up.
He hears you.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Great things are in the works at SOTH! This Sunday we’ll begin to see some of the great work come to fruition that our Communications team has worked on since the Spring of 2006! We’ll be revealing our new “On the Path of Life…Together” logo, and also unveiling some new graphics in Sunday worship and a brand new, full-color worship guide.
In coming days, a complete overhaul of our website, sothumc.net will be ready as well. All of these great tools help communicate the spirit, life and faith of our congregation to the world around us, and invites them to come take part in the great things happening at our church!
LAND ACQUISITION UPDATE: Our land acquisition process has changed and developed since our last congregational meeting in November. We will have another town-hall information session during Sunday School, in our worship space: Next Sunday, February 11th, at 10:15 a.m. Don’t miss this important time of information and discussion before our scheduled charge conference.
Our D.S. Jacqui Rose-Tucker will be on hand the morning of February 18th as the congregation votes on the proposed land purchase. One worship service only that morning, 10 AM.
SOTH This Sunday: Our new worship schedule continues to do well! Come out for worship at 9 a.m. or 11 a.m. for part 4 of our New Year’s series based on Rick Warren’s 2006 book, God’s Answers to Life’s Difficult Questions. This week: How Can I Have Confidence in Crisis? At 10:15, we’ll continue our new adult SS class in the worship space with the Gospel of John, chapters 4 and 5.
Servant Evangelism Update: Tim Potate and Lamar Gilstrap will be leading a servant evangelism event at Arbor Place Mall on Valentine’s Day, February 14th. Join them and other SOTH members as they engage in simple acts of kindness to illustrate the grace and love of God in our community.
Book Study: A new book study, Facing Your Giants will begin meeting at the home of Tim and Ellie Potate, Monday night, February 19th at 6:30 PM.
We had hoped for something more.
Don’t get me wrong. I can savor the awesome, early morning sound of rain on the rooftop as well as any tender-hearted singer/songwriter type out there.
But we were hoping for something more. Something white and fluffy. Something sticking to the ground, willing to stay with us for a few hours of exquisite, government-sanctioned downtime.
We were looking for a snow day. It didn’t happen.
Instead, we got rain, by the buckets full. Cold rain, 34 degree rain. A few measley degrees colder, and we’d be celebrating like the folks in Blairsville this morning.
Blairsville!!!!!!!!!
The worst part came at about a quarter till seven, when we had to wake our sleeping first grader. “Did it snow?” he asked, still warm and groggy from his long winter’s nap.
“No. It just rained. There’s gonna be school.”
With a tear in his eye, he got up and dutifully got ready to take on the day.
Disappointment can be a bitter pill. Especially when you turn on the local news and see the scornful radar displayed in shades of white, pink and green.
Douglasville? All green, baby. Rain.
It’s tough to see the hateful truth played out in your living room in living color. God is snowing on the people just to your north when you’re a Southerner so close to the holy grail of a “snow day.”
If you’re from Minnesota, there’s no way you can understand the concept of disappointment in not getting ice or snow. You have to be from the land of “I need to get to the grocery store NOW to get milk, eggs and bread,” to understand.
And so, I suspect this blog greets many of you in wet, cold and less-than-festive moods this morning.
Maybe this will help.
This is one of my favorite time of year for TV, even though I hate to admit it.
It’s American Idol audition time, and it’s compelling TV because the drama of disappointment is perfectly played out for the audience.
If you’re not among the 40 million Americans who watch the yearly, amateur singing competition, then you’ve missed some quite wondrous moments of entertainment.
With each initial audition, we witness the birth of hope and possibility, and its growth into full-blown joy or deepest despair.
Phrases like, “I’m going to Hollywood!!!” or “Dawg, singing --- not your thing” are well-known to Idol fans.
Without fail, each episode showcases moments of disappointment. Potential contestants will have hoped for something more than they found in the judges’ reactions. The tone-deaf, ignorant of their missing skill sets, will learn the harsh news --- they absolutely cannot sing.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but…” Simon Cowell will say, and you always know something amazingly rude is about to come next.
When asked about his penchant for crushing the untalented with his brutal honesty, and whether he ever feels bad for telling the truth, Simon said, “"No, what I am doing is kind by telling people who are useless 'Do something that you're good at'. So I would only feel guilt if I misled somebody who was terrible."
That’s how disappointment works, you know.
Sometimes, life takes a Simon-esque turn. “Look,” life says, “you thought something else was going to happen. It’s not. Find another way.”
Obviously, some disappointments are harder to take than others. A lost snow day can be forgotten by lunch. A lost job, a broken relationship, a crashed dream…these take more time and work for healing to happen.
But it can happen. Disappointment means a new direction, and that new direction can be better than any we’d ever imagined.
“Dawg…” sometimes singing’s just not your thing. Something else is.
Psalm 31 reminds us:
Blessed be the Lord, for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me when I was beset as a city under siege. I had said in my alarm, ‘I am driven farcut off from your sight.’ But you heard my supplications when I cried out to you for help."
Sometimes we wish for snow…and God sends it to Blairsville. You know what I mean.
Life moves, and turns, and the road rolls out before us, or maybe even drops, for just a moment, from beneath us. Don’t give up.
He hears you.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Great things are in the works at SOTH! This Sunday we’ll begin to see some of the great work come to fruition that our Communications team has worked on since the Spring of 2006! We’ll be revealing our new “On the Path of Life…Together” logo, and also unveiling some new graphics in Sunday worship and a brand new, full-color worship guide.
In coming days, a complete overhaul of our website, sothumc.net will be ready as well. All of these great tools help communicate the spirit, life and faith of our congregation to the world around us, and invites them to come take part in the great things happening at our church!
LAND ACQUISITION UPDATE: Our land acquisition process has changed and developed since our last congregational meeting in November. We will have another town-hall information session during Sunday School, in our worship space: Next Sunday, February 11th, at 10:15 a.m. Don’t miss this important time of information and discussion before our scheduled charge conference.
Our D.S. Jacqui Rose-Tucker will be on hand the morning of February 18th as the congregation votes on the proposed land purchase. One worship service only that morning, 10 AM.
SOTH This Sunday: Our new worship schedule continues to do well! Come out for worship at 9 a.m. or 11 a.m. for part 4 of our New Year’s series based on Rick Warren’s 2006 book, God’s Answers to Life’s Difficult Questions. This week: How Can I Have Confidence in Crisis? At 10:15, we’ll continue our new adult SS class in the worship space with the Gospel of John, chapters 4 and 5.
Servant Evangelism Update: Tim Potate and Lamar Gilstrap will be leading a servant evangelism event at Arbor Place Mall on Valentine’s Day, February 14th. Join them and other SOTH members as they engage in simple acts of kindness to illustrate the grace and love of God in our community.
Book Study: A new book study, Facing Your Giants will begin meeting at the home of Tim and Ellie Potate, Monday night, February 19th at 6:30 PM.
Jan 18, 2007
Life
Well, it’s been quite some time since last we talked via the blog.
Truly, much is going on in world. Much of it during these last few weeks of Christmas and Roberts family expansion time has caught my attention for a few fleeting seconds – at least long enough to make me think, “I could write about that on the blog…”
There is the very serious and overwhelming. More troops are going to Iraq. A Lutheran church trial is happening in Atlanta, and a child abduction filled the news and thankfully resolved, but with many details yet to emerge.
There is the silly. I mean, we’ve had a couple of nights of the greatest tv in the world --- the first round of bad, bad auditions on American Idol.
Certainly, there is much to write about, but those topics will have to wait for another day.
This week, my thoughts have been colored by a symbolic trip through time and space.
My parents have been at our house (and they’re faithful readers of the SOTHBLOG, of course), and there is nothing like standing in the middle of three generations to give a person a sense of perspective and place.
For instance, even with all that’s happened in the world, and the ways that things change every single day --- some things really do stay the same.
These are the things you learn when a new baby makes its way into your family. When you’re blessed to be surrounded by family and friends and an incredible church.
For the last couple of weeks, the world of the Roberts house has shrunk down to a wonderful couple thousand square feet.
Whatever goes on in the world at large, the world right around us demands our attention, and is the place that life is really lived. Please don’t get me wrong --- I want Christians to engage with the world and to be God’s agents of transformation and kingdom-building.
But these few days have brought me to a new realization. When I think about all my memories, my childhood and family and all of the things that weave generations together, it’s the simple things that really matter.
I’m pretty sure that life comes down to all that happens in the processes of keeping everyone fed, clean and healthy. Life happens one home at a time, one day at a time.
I love the new series of – yes – sausage commercials that have been on tv lately, playing on this very theme. Click here to see them, and make sure to go all the way down and watch the one called, "Why."
It’s a push and stretch for most of us to keep it all in balance. We may not have to “light and heat the earth,” but we all certainly have a variety of responsibilities that keep us more than occupied.
A quick glance at the magazine rack of most any major retailer will find a common question posed most often: How can we do it all?
How can we cook gourmet meals in thirty minutes or less? How can we shed fat and build muscle in only minutes each week? How can we beat stress, succeed professionally and still find time to be the best moms and dads?
And, then your pastor says, “don’t forget to give of yourself, plug in, build relationships and grow closer to God.”
Church guilt, the sweetest kind.
How we gonna get it all done? Jimmy Dean pre-chopped breakfasts?
There’s bound to be another way, right?
This Christmas, a wonderful cousin of mine gave the family a tremendous gift. She spent time sitting down with my grandmother, preserving her time-tested recipes and compiling a cookbook of all our favorite, home-cooked meals.
Sixty years’ worth of biscuits-and-gravy wisdom are contained in those pages. But the recipes, incredible as they are, aren’t even the best part.
On about every other page, my cousin included quotes of folklore, wives’ tales and common sense from my grandmother.
Early in the book, she poses the question all of us have wanted to ask:
“I asked Grandmother how she did it, how she raised six kids and cooked three meals a day and took care of everything else. I wanted to know her secret.”
My Grandmama’s response is a wonderful thing: “It wasn’t real easy, but it was a different way of life back then, you were expected to learn and do certain things and not fight about it. It was just something you did.”
I love her response, because I don’t think the question even really makes sense for her. It’s certainly not one she’d ever thought of asking. We might as well ask her how she breathed for those years.
It’s just what you did.
The key, I think, is that she wasn’t trying to do it all. Just the important things, and to do them “without fighting about it.”
What if life really could be more about getting breakfast on the table for the kids than an existential quest for fulfillment?
Jesus had a job. A trade and craft. He had a mother and siblings. Meals were put on the table…everyone was kept clean and fed and healthy. Life happened, day by day.
In the midst of it all…fulfillment.
May you know the presence of the Holy Spirit today, and as Garrison Keillor always claims for “powdered milk biscuits,” may it give you “the strength to do what needs to be done.”
And don’t fight about it.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Once again, what needs to be said is a huge thank you to all of you who have done countless acts of kindness and giving for our family since Jack’s been born. SOTH UMC, you are the greatest! Adam
Don’t forget, SOTH’s new worship schedule is 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. with Sunday School for all ages between services.
Second installment of our sermon series this week from Rick Warren’s book, “God’s Answers to Life’s Difficult Questions: How Can I Live Life Above Average?”
Our Bible Study of the Gospel of John continues with chapter 2 in the worship space at 10:20.
Truly, much is going on in world. Much of it during these last few weeks of Christmas and Roberts family expansion time has caught my attention for a few fleeting seconds – at least long enough to make me think, “I could write about that on the blog…”
There is the very serious and overwhelming. More troops are going to Iraq. A Lutheran church trial is happening in Atlanta, and a child abduction filled the news and thankfully resolved, but with many details yet to emerge.
There is the silly. I mean, we’ve had a couple of nights of the greatest tv in the world --- the first round of bad, bad auditions on American Idol.
Certainly, there is much to write about, but those topics will have to wait for another day.
This week, my thoughts have been colored by a symbolic trip through time and space.
My parents have been at our house (and they’re faithful readers of the SOTHBLOG, of course), and there is nothing like standing in the middle of three generations to give a person a sense of perspective and place.
For instance, even with all that’s happened in the world, and the ways that things change every single day --- some things really do stay the same.
These are the things you learn when a new baby makes its way into your family. When you’re blessed to be surrounded by family and friends and an incredible church.
For the last couple of weeks, the world of the Roberts house has shrunk down to a wonderful couple thousand square feet.
Whatever goes on in the world at large, the world right around us demands our attention, and is the place that life is really lived. Please don’t get me wrong --- I want Christians to engage with the world and to be God’s agents of transformation and kingdom-building.
But these few days have brought me to a new realization. When I think about all my memories, my childhood and family and all of the things that weave generations together, it’s the simple things that really matter.
I’m pretty sure that life comes down to all that happens in the processes of keeping everyone fed, clean and healthy. Life happens one home at a time, one day at a time.
I love the new series of – yes – sausage commercials that have been on tv lately, playing on this very theme. Click here to see them, and make sure to go all the way down and watch the one called, "Why."
It’s a push and stretch for most of us to keep it all in balance. We may not have to “light and heat the earth,” but we all certainly have a variety of responsibilities that keep us more than occupied.
A quick glance at the magazine rack of most any major retailer will find a common question posed most often: How can we do it all?
How can we cook gourmet meals in thirty minutes or less? How can we shed fat and build muscle in only minutes each week? How can we beat stress, succeed professionally and still find time to be the best moms and dads?
And, then your pastor says, “don’t forget to give of yourself, plug in, build relationships and grow closer to God.”
Church guilt, the sweetest kind.
How we gonna get it all done? Jimmy Dean pre-chopped breakfasts?
There’s bound to be another way, right?
This Christmas, a wonderful cousin of mine gave the family a tremendous gift. She spent time sitting down with my grandmother, preserving her time-tested recipes and compiling a cookbook of all our favorite, home-cooked meals.
Sixty years’ worth of biscuits-and-gravy wisdom are contained in those pages. But the recipes, incredible as they are, aren’t even the best part.
On about every other page, my cousin included quotes of folklore, wives’ tales and common sense from my grandmother.
Early in the book, she poses the question all of us have wanted to ask:
“I asked Grandmother how she did it, how she raised six kids and cooked three meals a day and took care of everything else. I wanted to know her secret.”
My Grandmama’s response is a wonderful thing: “It wasn’t real easy, but it was a different way of life back then, you were expected to learn and do certain things and not fight about it. It was just something you did.”
I love her response, because I don’t think the question even really makes sense for her. It’s certainly not one she’d ever thought of asking. We might as well ask her how she breathed for those years.
It’s just what you did.
The key, I think, is that she wasn’t trying to do it all. Just the important things, and to do them “without fighting about it.”
What if life really could be more about getting breakfast on the table for the kids than an existential quest for fulfillment?
Jesus had a job. A trade and craft. He had a mother and siblings. Meals were put on the table…everyone was kept clean and fed and healthy. Life happened, day by day.
In the midst of it all…fulfillment.
May you know the presence of the Holy Spirit today, and as Garrison Keillor always claims for “powdered milk biscuits,” may it give you “the strength to do what needs to be done.”
And don’t fight about it.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
Once again, what needs to be said is a huge thank you to all of you who have done countless acts of kindness and giving for our family since Jack’s been born. SOTH UMC, you are the greatest! Adam
Don’t forget, SOTH’s new worship schedule is 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. with Sunday School for all ages between services.
Second installment of our sermon series this week from Rick Warren’s book, “God’s Answers to Life’s Difficult Questions: How Can I Live Life Above Average?”
Our Bible Study of the Gospel of John continues with chapter 2 in the worship space at 10:20.
Dec 20, 2006
Expecting
“I wonder what he (she) will look like?”
What parent-to-be hasn’t asked that question?
Mary and Joseph surely must have been wondering, too.
Five days before he was to be born, so much remained unknown.
Who would he be? What was God trying to do? The angel…the dream…it was all real, wasn’t it?
The days just prior to the birth of a child are overwhelming.
On some level, expectant parents (even experienced ones – maybe most of all) know that they’re sitting together in a little inflatable raft, just this side of Hoover Dam.
They know that at some point very soon, that dam is going to burst, and a flood of new experiences will flow forth in a way that changes life forever.
In the meantime, life goes on as usual inside the little vessel. Really, what else is there to do…but wait. These final days are the very definition of what it means to be “expecting.”
We’re “expecting.” It could be anytime. We wait.
I remember standing in my Grandmama’s “sewing room” when I was all of 9 years old. At 9 years old, I knew myself to be much more than a mere “child,” and I was working hard to shed my “childish” ways.
It was just about 5 days before Christmas. As she worked, making the final stitches on hand-made gifts for me and my cousins, I proudly proclaimed to my Grandmama, “This Christmas has just flown by…you know, I think they get faster every year.”
I didn’t really understand why she started laughing.
I do now.
The truth is that Christmas seemed to take forever in those days. The year’s journey from Christmas to Christmas seemed to last several lifetimes. That’s what excitement, hope and expectation can do to time in the mind of a child.
As the days go by, our account of years-lived grows larger and deeper. Our perspective begins to change.
The formerly cavernous space occupied by the period of a month or a year has collapses under its own weight. The years really do go by faster every time. The danger is that repetition can dampen excitement. Expectation can get lost in the shuffle of time.
Time changes things, and sometimes those changes are not easy for any of us.
The time is gone when little children will beg treats from my great-grandmother’s Christmas candy-filled apron, like I always did those many years ago. But the wonder of God’s world, and God’s time (it’s not really ours, after all) is that even still, her role will not go unplayed.
The generations of our family, like summertime-cousins playing “Mother May I,” have all taken one “Giant Step Forward.”
That Christmas, when I was 9, my Dad was the same age that I am now.
You get the idea. It all happened while we were expecting one thing or another.
And here we are.
…In time, his parents came to know what he would look like. Eventually, “the days were accomplished.” They years can teach us that we really are cast together in the great loom of time. The Christmas Baby teaches us of God’s love.
Our beginnings and endings may overlap, and we may even lose sight of one another for a time. He will not let us be lost forever.
“So that no one should perish…”
God really does love us that much, and yes --- he does have a plan.
On this, yet another 20th of December, I stood in my kitchen, sipping coffee. The house was quiet and dark. Across the way, a seven-year-old version of myself and a three-year-old version of his mother lay in their beds, sleeping away the hours till Christmas morning.
Sewing-room to kitchen. A short, little stroll…now decades long.
Jack Spitzer Roberts is waiting, too -- anxious to carry those Crockett County names into the world that he will help make.
For a moment, I felt that my own name could be Joseph as the thoughts felt their way through my mind: “I wonder what he’ll look like, be like, think like, play like, talk like…”
Our little raft bobs in the water…stirred by currents that came from the other side of the dam.
God was with that uncertain but faithful man and his frightened, young wife as they made their way, two millennia ago. They waited, and they wondered.
Their faith is our life raft.
Their child is our savior.
Excitement…expectation…hope…joy
Seconds…and…minutes…and…days…and…years.
We have never been alone, not in a single one of them…and we never will be.
May the peace of Christ fill you with all joy and expectation. May the clock run slowly, just like it did when we were kids. And may we savor each second, praising God with thankful hearts!
Grace and Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
"Baby Jack" Watch: Given the subject of this blog, it seems only fair to give you the update that Holly is 38 weeks and nearing delivery, and we're "waiting" to see what will happen when. Thanks so much to all of you who have kept Holly, me, Will, Sam and "Jack to be" in your prayers. We'll let you know! Adam
Christmas week is here! Take a look at our Christmas worship schedule, and please invite a friend to meet you at SOTH!
Tonight, 6:30 PM – Blue Christmas Worship, a time of reflection and remembrance for those who struggle emotionally and spiritually during the holidays. This service will be long on hope and celebration, and we hope that you will join us and all who look to Jesus for hope in their lives this season.
Sunday Morning, December 24th: One worship service only – 10 AM
Christmas Eve Communion and Candlelight: Two Service, 5 and 7 PM with childcare provided both times.
Christmas Morning, December 25: SERVANT EVANGELISM EVENT
Meet at SOTH at 7 AM Christmas Morning to join our team of servant evangelists who are going out to freely share the love of God with our community. Our team will be taking coffee and doughnuts to local fire and police stations and hospitals to help remember those who are away from home on Christmas morning and to tell them that God loves them. Making this small sacrifice on Christmas morning may make your time together even more meaningful and will really mean a lot to those who experience God’s love through this simple act of grace.
Sunday Morning, December 31st: One worship service only – 10 AM
Sunday Morning, January 7, 2007 – NEW WORSHIP SCHEDULE BEGINS!
9 AM and 11 AM with Sunday School for all ages, 10:15 AM
What parent-to-be hasn’t asked that question?
Mary and Joseph surely must have been wondering, too.
Five days before he was to be born, so much remained unknown.
Who would he be? What was God trying to do? The angel…the dream…it was all real, wasn’t it?
The days just prior to the birth of a child are overwhelming.
On some level, expectant parents (even experienced ones – maybe most of all) know that they’re sitting together in a little inflatable raft, just this side of Hoover Dam.
They know that at some point very soon, that dam is going to burst, and a flood of new experiences will flow forth in a way that changes life forever.
In the meantime, life goes on as usual inside the little vessel. Really, what else is there to do…but wait. These final days are the very definition of what it means to be “expecting.”
We’re “expecting.” It could be anytime. We wait.
I remember standing in my Grandmama’s “sewing room” when I was all of 9 years old. At 9 years old, I knew myself to be much more than a mere “child,” and I was working hard to shed my “childish” ways.
It was just about 5 days before Christmas. As she worked, making the final stitches on hand-made gifts for me and my cousins, I proudly proclaimed to my Grandmama, “This Christmas has just flown by…you know, I think they get faster every year.”
I didn’t really understand why she started laughing.
I do now.
The truth is that Christmas seemed to take forever in those days. The year’s journey from Christmas to Christmas seemed to last several lifetimes. That’s what excitement, hope and expectation can do to time in the mind of a child.
As the days go by, our account of years-lived grows larger and deeper. Our perspective begins to change.
The formerly cavernous space occupied by the period of a month or a year has collapses under its own weight. The years really do go by faster every time. The danger is that repetition can dampen excitement. Expectation can get lost in the shuffle of time.
Time changes things, and sometimes those changes are not easy for any of us.
The time is gone when little children will beg treats from my great-grandmother’s Christmas candy-filled apron, like I always did those many years ago. But the wonder of God’s world, and God’s time (it’s not really ours, after all) is that even still, her role will not go unplayed.
The generations of our family, like summertime-cousins playing “Mother May I,” have all taken one “Giant Step Forward.”
That Christmas, when I was 9, my Dad was the same age that I am now.
You get the idea. It all happened while we were expecting one thing or another.
And here we are.
…In time, his parents came to know what he would look like. Eventually, “the days were accomplished.” They years can teach us that we really are cast together in the great loom of time. The Christmas Baby teaches us of God’s love.
Our beginnings and endings may overlap, and we may even lose sight of one another for a time. He will not let us be lost forever.
“So that no one should perish…”
God really does love us that much, and yes --- he does have a plan.
On this, yet another 20th of December, I stood in my kitchen, sipping coffee. The house was quiet and dark. Across the way, a seven-year-old version of myself and a three-year-old version of his mother lay in their beds, sleeping away the hours till Christmas morning.
Sewing-room to kitchen. A short, little stroll…now decades long.
Jack Spitzer Roberts is waiting, too -- anxious to carry those Crockett County names into the world that he will help make.
For a moment, I felt that my own name could be Joseph as the thoughts felt their way through my mind: “I wonder what he’ll look like, be like, think like, play like, talk like…”
Our little raft bobs in the water…stirred by currents that came from the other side of the dam.
God was with that uncertain but faithful man and his frightened, young wife as they made their way, two millennia ago. They waited, and they wondered.
Their faith is our life raft.
Their child is our savior.
Excitement…expectation…hope…joy
Seconds…and…minutes…and…days…and…years.
We have never been alone, not in a single one of them…and we never will be.
May the peace of Christ fill you with all joy and expectation. May the clock run slowly, just like it did when we were kids. And may we savor each second, praising God with thankful hearts!
Grace and Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
"Baby Jack" Watch: Given the subject of this blog, it seems only fair to give you the update that Holly is 38 weeks and nearing delivery, and we're "waiting" to see what will happen when. Thanks so much to all of you who have kept Holly, me, Will, Sam and "Jack to be" in your prayers. We'll let you know! Adam
Christmas week is here! Take a look at our Christmas worship schedule, and please invite a friend to meet you at SOTH!
Tonight, 6:30 PM – Blue Christmas Worship, a time of reflection and remembrance for those who struggle emotionally and spiritually during the holidays. This service will be long on hope and celebration, and we hope that you will join us and all who look to Jesus for hope in their lives this season.
Sunday Morning, December 24th: One worship service only – 10 AM
Christmas Eve Communion and Candlelight: Two Service, 5 and 7 PM with childcare provided both times.
Christmas Morning, December 25: SERVANT EVANGELISM EVENT
Meet at SOTH at 7 AM Christmas Morning to join our team of servant evangelists who are going out to freely share the love of God with our community. Our team will be taking coffee and doughnuts to local fire and police stations and hospitals to help remember those who are away from home on Christmas morning and to tell them that God loves them. Making this small sacrifice on Christmas morning may make your time together even more meaningful and will really mean a lot to those who experience God’s love through this simple act of grace.
Sunday Morning, December 31st: One worship service only – 10 AM
Sunday Morning, January 7, 2007 – NEW WORSHIP SCHEDULE BEGINS!
9 AM and 11 AM with Sunday School for all ages, 10:15 AM
Dec 13, 2006
Line
Parents. Everybody’s got ‘em.
Some people have really got ‘em.
Jay Bakker, for instance.
Does that name ring a bell?
His parents’ first names might. They’re Jim and Tammy Faye.
Oh……that Bakker.
Jay, their only son, was 11 years old when his parents’ televangelism empire, “The PTL Club,” began to crumble. Allegations of his father’s affair turned into eventual criminal charges of fraud.
An article in today’s AJC details the new reality show based on the last year of Jay’s life, “One Punk Under God,” that began airing on the Sundance channel last night.
Jay has grown up and entered the ministry in his own right….and in his own way.
He founded Atlanta’s “Revolution,” and has since moved on to begin another Revolution ministry in Brooklyn, New York.
Further reading this morning uncovered a sad article about another famous Christian family. Apparently, the Grahams are embroiled in a private (now becoming public) disagreement over the final resting place for Billy and Ruth.
Kids. What’re you gonna do?
If even the Grahams can see their family descend into feud and struggle, is there a lot of hope for the rest of us?
Well, Christmas says there is.
Here’s what I mean: have you ever taken a good look at the beginning of Matthew’s Gospel? Maybe not --- genealogies don’t tend to be the most exhilarating of all scriptural passages. The secret is you’ve got to read close, and a little between the lines.
Why would Matthew kick off his story of Jesus in such a “compelling” way?
Perez, Zerah, Hezron, Aram, Aminadab, Nahshon, Boaz, Obed, Abijah, Asaph, Joram, Salathiel, Eliud, and etc., and etc., and etc.
I wish you could see that sentence as I’ve written it in Microsoft Word. It’s got more red underlining than my freshman English essays. My computer says those names do not compute.
So, what is the deal, anyway?
The deal is Matthew’s need to draw us an important picture of Jesus’ identity.
Everybody has parents. And kids, what’re you gonna do?
There are definitely some “characters,” several of the “ill repute” variety, in that historical parade. Let’s just say that there are a lot more folks on the “naughty” list than the “nice” one in Matthew’s Christmas story.
And people --- that’s Jesus’ family we’re talking about.
Prophecy said that the messiah would descend from the line of David.
That’s exactly what Jesus did, and Matthew illustrates, through “Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called the messiah” (Matthew 1:16).
Really fascinating is that Matthew, while mentioning each man in the line of fathers, mentions only five women: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, “the wife of Uriah,” and Mary.
Each of those women are mentioned prominently in other scripture, and the stories would make most daytime soap writers blush with embarrassment.
The, “wife of Uriah?” She could also be known as “mistress of David.” Or even, “cheater with David.” Her husband was intentionally left to be killed in battle on her new lover’s order.
Those are Jesus’ great, great, great…you get the idea…grandparents.
So…what is Matthew telling us?
Whatever his intention, what I gather is that God doesn’t mind a mess. Redemption is always possible. Everyone, even Jesus, falls somewhere in a line of those who’ve gone before and those who follow after. Somewhere in the middle of the line, when the world would least expect it…God chooses to do his work.
That’s incarnation. That’s inherently Christian. That’s the good news.
I hope this blog finds you this day in the middle of your work, in the middle of your week, in the middle of your shopping, parenting, playing, loving and living.
The middle….the mess….that’s where the good stuff lives.
May something transformational, even incarnational, happen for us today.
Immanuel. God with us. Amazing, and true.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
We're coming down to the end of 2006 and entering a season of wonderful Christmas celebrations. Please make plans to join us on December 20, 2006 at 6:30 pm for our second annual "Blue Christmas" worship celebration. This time of worship is very special for those who want to remember those they miss during this season, and we'll focus on the hope that Christmas offers all in our community who may be blue during these days.
Christmas Eve candlelight and communion: 5 and 7 pm, with childcare available at both services.
One worship service only, Sunday morning December 24th, and Sunday, December 31: 10 AM.
New Worship Schedule begins January 7 --- 9 AM and 11 AM with Sunday school for kids and adults, 10:15.
Some people have really got ‘em.
Jay Bakker, for instance.
Does that name ring a bell?
His parents’ first names might. They’re Jim and Tammy Faye.
Oh……that Bakker.
Jay, their only son, was 11 years old when his parents’ televangelism empire, “The PTL Club,” began to crumble. Allegations of his father’s affair turned into eventual criminal charges of fraud.
An article in today’s AJC details the new reality show based on the last year of Jay’s life, “One Punk Under God,” that began airing on the Sundance channel last night.
Jay has grown up and entered the ministry in his own right….and in his own way.
He founded Atlanta’s “Revolution,” and has since moved on to begin another Revolution ministry in Brooklyn, New York.
Further reading this morning uncovered a sad article about another famous Christian family. Apparently, the Grahams are embroiled in a private (now becoming public) disagreement over the final resting place for Billy and Ruth.
Kids. What’re you gonna do?
If even the Grahams can see their family descend into feud and struggle, is there a lot of hope for the rest of us?
Well, Christmas says there is.
Here’s what I mean: have you ever taken a good look at the beginning of Matthew’s Gospel? Maybe not --- genealogies don’t tend to be the most exhilarating of all scriptural passages. The secret is you’ve got to read close, and a little between the lines.
Why would Matthew kick off his story of Jesus in such a “compelling” way?
Perez, Zerah, Hezron, Aram, Aminadab, Nahshon, Boaz, Obed, Abijah, Asaph, Joram, Salathiel, Eliud, and etc., and etc., and etc.
I wish you could see that sentence as I’ve written it in Microsoft Word. It’s got more red underlining than my freshman English essays. My computer says those names do not compute.
So, what is the deal, anyway?
The deal is Matthew’s need to draw us an important picture of Jesus’ identity.
Everybody has parents. And kids, what’re you gonna do?
There are definitely some “characters,” several of the “ill repute” variety, in that historical parade. Let’s just say that there are a lot more folks on the “naughty” list than the “nice” one in Matthew’s Christmas story.
And people --- that’s Jesus’ family we’re talking about.
Prophecy said that the messiah would descend from the line of David.
That’s exactly what Jesus did, and Matthew illustrates, through “Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called the messiah” (Matthew 1:16).
Really fascinating is that Matthew, while mentioning each man in the line of fathers, mentions only five women: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, “the wife of Uriah,” and Mary.
Each of those women are mentioned prominently in other scripture, and the stories would make most daytime soap writers blush with embarrassment.
The, “wife of Uriah?” She could also be known as “mistress of David.” Or even, “cheater with David.” Her husband was intentionally left to be killed in battle on her new lover’s order.
Those are Jesus’ great, great, great…you get the idea…grandparents.
So…what is Matthew telling us?
Whatever his intention, what I gather is that God doesn’t mind a mess. Redemption is always possible. Everyone, even Jesus, falls somewhere in a line of those who’ve gone before and those who follow after. Somewhere in the middle of the line, when the world would least expect it…God chooses to do his work.
That’s incarnation. That’s inherently Christian. That’s the good news.
I hope this blog finds you this day in the middle of your work, in the middle of your week, in the middle of your shopping, parenting, playing, loving and living.
The middle….the mess….that’s where the good stuff lives.
May something transformational, even incarnational, happen for us today.
Immanuel. God with us. Amazing, and true.
Grace & Peace,
Adam
LIFE AT SOTH:
We're coming down to the end of 2006 and entering a season of wonderful Christmas celebrations. Please make plans to join us on December 20, 2006 at 6:30 pm for our second annual "Blue Christmas" worship celebration. This time of worship is very special for those who want to remember those they miss during this season, and we'll focus on the hope that Christmas offers all in our community who may be blue during these days.
Christmas Eve candlelight and communion: 5 and 7 pm, with childcare available at both services.
One worship service only, Sunday morning December 24th, and Sunday, December 31: 10 AM.
New Worship Schedule begins January 7 --- 9 AM and 11 AM with Sunday school for kids and adults, 10:15.
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